spirit level

American

noun

Surveying.

a device for determining true horizontal or vertical directions by the centering of a bubble in a slightly curved glass tube or tubes filled with alcohol or ether.

spirit level British

noun

a device for setting horizontal surfaces, consisting of an accurate block of material in which a sealed slightly curved tube partially filled with liquid is set so that the air bubble rests between two marks on the tube when the block is horizontal

"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 spirit level

First recorded in 1760–70

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.

Traversing Alaska’s shattered coastline by barge and bush plane, he employs the field geologist’s tools — hammer, spirit level, compass, notepad and, to “read” the landscape, his eyes.

From Los Angeles Times • Aug. 4, 2017

But on closer inspection, it turns out to be a drill, and what looked like a machete is a spirit level.

From BBC • May 12, 2015

Or someone with a tool bag and spirit level slung over his shoulder.

From The Guardian • Feb. 6, 2013

Ramrod straight during his magnificent running days, his spine could still centre the bubble in a spirit level.

From The Guardian • Aug. 11, 2012

The boat was trimmed by guidance of a spirit level until she rode the water at precisely the draft that assured the best speed.

From American Merchant Ships and Sailors by Abbot, Willis J. (Willis John)

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