yardarm

American

[yahrd-ahrm] / ˈyɑrdˌɑrm /

noun

Nautical.

either of the outer portions of the yard of a square sail.

yardarm British

/ ˈjɑːdˌɑːm /

noun

nautical the two tapering outer ends of a ship's yard

"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 yardarm

First recorded in 1545–55; yard ¹ + arm ¹

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.

The sun’s over the yardarm if I’m not cruelly mistaken.

From New York Times • Oct. 14, 2022

As we'd sailed here, I'd been up there, out on the yardarm hauling up a sail.

From Salon • Oct. 16, 2021

Of course that would be the yardarm, matey.

From Washington Post • Jun. 12, 2015

And it ended with the sun over the yardarm in my best friend's backyard, where we celebrated the season by grilling a Copper River sockeye on a cedar plank.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 6, 2011

She’d been thinking about herself, not Nico, but she followed Frank’s gaze to the top of the foremast, where Nico was perched on the yardarm.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

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