sheepshank

American

[sheep-shangk] / ˈʃipˌʃæŋk /

noun

a kind of knot, hitch, or bend made on a rope to shorten it temporarily.

sheepshank British

/ ˈʃiːpˌʃæŋk /

noun

a knot consisting of two hitches at the ends of a bight made in a rope to shorten it temporarily

"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 sheepshank

First recorded in 1635–45; short for sheepshank knot; literal sense unclear

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.

His fellow-justices, Sir Benjamin Bullockshed and Squire Sheepshank, had asked his aid to stop the like nuisances, and it had been done at once.

From International Miscellany of Literature, Art and Science, Vol. 1, No. 3, Oct. 1, 1850 by Various

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