spritsail

American  

[sprit-seyl, sprit-suhl] / ˈsprɪtˌseɪl, ˈsprɪt səl /

noun

Nautical.

1. a sail extended by a sprit.

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spritsail British  

/ ˈsprɪtˌseɪl, ˈsprɪtsəl /

noun

1. a rectangular sail mounted on a sprit in some 19th-century small vessels

2. (in medieval rigging) a square sail mounted on a yard on the bowsprit

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Etymology

Origin of spritsail

1425–75; late Middle English sprete seyle ( sprit, sail ); compare Dutch sprietzeil

Example Sentences

The spritsail would then be furled, and the spritsail-yard brought alongship.

From On the Spanish Main Or, Some English forays on the Isthmus of Darien. by Masefield, John

Our spritsail yard, broken in two places, dangled from the bowsprit; while our mainmast was splintered from the futtock-shrouds to within ten feet of the deck.

From The Quest of the 'Golden Hope' A Seventeenth Century Story of Adventure by Westerman, Percy F. (Percy Francis)

Forward the ships had bowsprits, on which each set a spritsail, from a spritsail yard.

From On the Spanish Main Or, Some English forays on the Isthmus of Darien. by Masefield, John

The spritsail further helped her in this, for, if the curl of a sea under her forefoot brought her to larboard or starboard, the sail forced her back again.

From The Frozen Pirate by Russell, W. Clark (William Clark)

Then, late in the afternoon, we hoisted our small spritsail and started.

From The Road by London, Jack