Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A device equipped with sharp teeth and towed alongside a ship to cut the mooring cables of submerged mines.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun nautical A device, stabilized with
vanes , towed alongside a vessel such that thecable attaching itcuts themoorings of submergedmines . - noun nautical A towed underwater object with
hydrofoils , of diverse uses
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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She gets ousted on "paravane," after wrangling with it for several awkward moments.
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A paravane is made up of a strong steel hawser (rope) that serves as a fender, and of two razor-edged blades that serve to cut the mine-moorings free.
Flag and Fleet How the British Navy Won the Freedom of the Seas William Charles Henry Wood 1905
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Dragging a paravane through the water made the ship go slow.
Flag and Fleet How the British Navy Won the Freedom of the Seas William Charles Henry Wood 1905
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The only safeguard a ship could carry was a paravane.
Flag and Fleet How the British Navy Won the Freedom of the Seas William Charles Henry Wood 1905
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A paravane makes contact with an explosive mine, and it is blown up: the paravane is destroyed, but the ship itself is safe because it has been destroyed.
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The sea yielded futtock shrouds, euphroes, baggywrinkles, and paravane skegs.
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The previously eliminated favorite Neetu Chandak is invited back on stage, due to the "ambiguous answers" she was given to her repeated questions about the origins of "paravane.
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