spirit level

American  

noun

Surveying.

spirit levels plural

1. 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.

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spirit level British  

noun

1. 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

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• spirit levels
  plural

Etymology

Origin of spirit level

First recorded in 1760–70

Example Sentences

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 hardwood block is covered with a brass plate with brass sighting bars mounted on a swivel and a spirit level under a brass strip on edge of instrument.

From Early American Scientific Instruments and Their Makers by Bedini, Silvio A.