seacock

American

[see-kok] / ˈsiˌkɒk /

noun

Nautical.

a valve in the hull of a vessel for admitting outside water into some part of the hull, as a ballast tank.

seacock British

/ ˈsiːˌkɒk /

noun

nautical a valve in the hull of a vessel below the water line for admitting sea water or for pumping out bilge water

"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

Etymology

Origin of seacock

First recorded in 1660–70; sea + cock ¹

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

seacock

The engineroom will delight anyone who has ever struggled to reach a distant oil filter or barked their knuckles trying to reach a seacock.

From Time Magazine Archive

Rio also modified his pre-trip inspection, which consists of visual checks of his plumbing, belts and electrics; now, he includes periodic seacock checks.

From Time Magazine Archive

When I open a seacock, I replace the length of pipe over the handle.

From Time Magazine Archive

"I examined that boat thoroughly before we left and spotted that seacock," he says.

From Time Magazine Archive

The fireroom is full of water; but it looks to me as though a seacock had been opened.

From Ruth Fielding Homeward Bound A Red Cross Worker's Ocean Perils by Alice B. Emerson

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