Scapa Flow

American

[skah-puh, skap-uh] / ˈskɑ pə, ˈskæp ə /

noun

an area of water off the N coast of Scotland, in the Orkney Islands: British naval base; German warships scuttled 1919.

Scapa Flow British

/ ˈskæpə /

noun

an extensive landlocked anchorage off the N coast of Scotland, in the Orkney Islands: major British naval base in both World Wars. Length: about 24 km (15 miles). Width: 13 km (8 miles)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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Scapa Flow

The British warships sunk in Scapa Flow - HMS Royal Oak and HMS Vanguard - are classified as war graves and special permission is needed from the Ministry of Defence to visit them.

From BBC ● Aug. 11, 2025

The SS Express sank north of Scapa Flow following a collision with another ship.

From BBC ● Aug. 28, 2023

Orkney-based Scapa Flow Charters was sued by his son Vincent, nine, in a legal action through his mother Debbie.

From BBC ● May 10, 2022

He was on board the MV Jean Elaine vessel, operated by Stromness-based Scapa Flow Charters, in the hours before his death.

From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2021

Indeed, until Scapa Flow was impregnably protected by booms and mines, the British commanders recognized that cruising in the open sea was its best means of avoiding the German U-boats.

From The Victory At Sea by Hendrick, Burton J.

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023