xebec

[ zee-bek ]
/ ˈzi bɛk /

noun

a small, three-masted vessel of the Mediterranean, formerly much used by corsairs, now employed to some extent in commerce.

QUIZZES

HEED THE VOX POPULI, AND TAKE THIS WORD OF THE DAY QUIZ!

Test your memory on these verbal firecrackers from the week of June 29 to July 5!
Question 1 of 7
anchorite
a granular metamorphic rock.
a person who has retired to a solitary place for a life of religious seclusion.
a hobble or fetter for a horse or other animal.
TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT
Also chebeck, zebec, zebeck.

Origin of xebec

1750–60; alteration of earlier chebec < French < Catalan xabec or Spanish xabeque (now jabeque), both < Arabic shabbāk

Words nearby xebec

xc, xcl, xd, xda, xe, xebec, xenakis, xenia, xenic acid, xenical, xeno-
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for xebec

British Dictionary definitions for xebec

xebec

zebec or zebeck

/ (ˈziːbɛk) /

noun

a small three-masted Mediterranean vessel with both square and lateen sails, formerly used by Algerian pirates and later used for commerce

Word Origin for xebec

C18: earlier chebec from French, ultimately from Arabic shabbāk; present spelling influenced by Catalan xabec, Spanish xabeque (now jabeque)
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