bitts pl (plural only)
(nautical, pluralonly) A frame composed of two strong oak timbers (bitt-heads) fixed vertically in the fore part of a ship, bolted to the deck beams to which are secured the cables when the ship rides to anchor
Source: Wiktionary
Bitts, n. pl. Etym: [Cf. F. bitte, Icel. biti, a beam. (Naut.)
Definition: A frame of two strong timbers fixed perpendicularly in the fore part of a ship, on which to fasten the cables as the ship rides at anchor, or in warping. Other bitts are used for belaying (belaying bitts), for sustaining the windlass (carrick bitts, winch bitts, or windlass bitts), to hold the pawls of the windlass (pawl bitts) etc.
Bitt, n. (Naut.)
Definition: See Bitts.
Bitt, v. t. Etym: [See Bitts.] (Naut.)
Definition: To put round the bitts; as, to bitt the cable, in order to fasten it or to slacken it gradually, which is called veering away. Totten.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
23 December 2024
(noun) Australian tree having hard white timber and glossy green leaves with white flowers followed by one-seeded glossy blue fruit
The earliest credible evidence of coffee-drinking as the modern beverage appeared in modern-day Yemen. In the middle of the 15th century in Sufi shrines where coffee seeds were first roasted and brewed for drinking. The Yemenis procured the coffee beans from the Ethiopian Highlands.
