whaleback

American  

[hweyl-bak, weyl-] / ˈʰweɪlˌbæk, ˈweɪl- /

noun

1. Nautical.

   1. a cargo vessel having a hull with a convex deck.

   2. a deck or cover curving upward.

2. something shaped like the back of a whale, as a rounded hill or an ocean wave.

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whaleback British  

/ ˈweɪlˌbæk /

noun

1. something shaped like the back of a whale

2. a steamboat having a curved upper deck

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Etymology

Origin of whaleback

First recorded in 1885–90; whale ¹ + back ¹

Example Sentences

The SS Christopher Columbus, a 362-foot-long whaleback steamer, stopped in Bayfield twice in the 1890s, once with nearly 3,000 people on board.

From New York Times • Sep. 13, 2022

Fontaine developed the 40's underbody from the whaleback shape that Ted Hood made famous in the heavy-displacement Little Harbor cruising yachts.

From Time Magazine Archive

Her stability comes from a generous beam, a slightly harder turn of the bilges than Hood's original whaleback, and a nearly 50 percent ballast ratio.

From Time Magazine Archive

Above Lyons, city of silk and the finest cooking in the world, rises the whaleback of Fourviere Hill crowned by the flamboyant Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourviere.

From Time Magazine Archive

Inside was a space eight feet long and three and one-half feet wide, with a round whaleback top.

From My Attainment of the Pole by Cook, Frederick A.