ASTERN

astern

(adverb) (of a ship or an airplane) behind; “we dropped her astern on the end of a seven-inch manilla, and she laid comfortably on the ebb tide”

aft, abaft, astern

(adverb) at or near or toward the stern of a ship or tail of an airplane; “stow the luggage aft”; “ships with square sails sail fairly efficiently with the wind abaft”; “the captain looked astern to see what the fuss was about”

astern

(adverb) stern foremost or backward; “the steamer went astern at half speed”

Source: WordNet® 3.1


Etymology

Adverb

astern (comparative more astern, superlative most astern) (nautical)

Behind (a vessel); in the rear.

In the direction of the stern; backward (motion); to the rear.

(obsolete or rare) At or toward the rear of a vessel.

Antonyms

• ahead

Adjective

astern (not comparable) (nautical)

Behind a vessel; having a bearing of 180 degrees from ahead.

Usage notes

• Within the ship, the corresponding adjective is abaft. An object nearer the stern than the mainmast is abaft the mainmast.

Anagrams

• Arents, Stearn, Terans, antres, arents, arnest, atrens, santer, sterna, transe

Source: Wiktionary


A*stern", adv. Etym: [Pref. a- + stern.] (Naut.)

1. In or at the hinder part of a ship; toward the hinder part, or stern; backward; as, to go astern.

2. Behind a ship; in the rear. "A gale of wind right astern." De Foe. "Left this strait astern." Drake. To bake astern, to go stern foremost.

– To be astern of the reckoning, to be behind the position given by the reckoning.

– To drop astern, to fall or be left behind.

– To go astern, to go backward, as from the action of currents or winds.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



RESET




Word of the Day

24 December 2024

INTUITIVELY

(adverb) in an intuitive manner; “inventors seem to have chosen intuitively a combination of explosive and aggressive sounds as warning signals to be used on automobiles”


coffee icon

Coffee Trivia

The expression “coffee break” was first attested in 1952 in glossy magazine advertisements by the Pan-American Coffee Bureau.

coffee icon