sounding line

American  

noun

1. a line weighted with a lead or plummet sounding lead and bearing marks to show the length paid out, used for sounding, as at sea.

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sounding line British  

noun

1. a line marked off to indicate its length and having a sounding lead at one end. It is dropped over the side of a vessel to determine the depth of the water

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Etymology

Origin of sounding line

Middle English word dating back to 1300–50

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

sounding line

Wednesday, August 26, the sounding line forewarned the reefs of Sable Island.

From Canada: the Empire of the North Being the Romantic Story of the New Dominion's Growth from Colony to Kingdom by Laut, Agnes C. (Agnes Christina)

Then we've got to use a sounding line to find out in which direction the hull of the sunken derelict lies.

From The Submarine Boys' Lightning Cruise The Young Kings of the Deep by Durham, Victor G.

“That is easily seen,” answered the sailor, taking the sounding line, which measured fifty fathoms, and letting it down.

From The Mysterious Island by White, Stephen W.

In fact, nothing delayed immediate departure but the consideration that two miles of sounding line were still to be hauled up from the ocean depths.

From All Around the Moon by Roth, Edward

The lieutenant wanted two men to keep it out in the current while he used the sounding line and recorded results.

From Overland by De Forest, J. W. (John William)