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mast
mast, a vertical spar which carries the sails of a sailing ship, though the schooner America started a temporary vogue, when she appeared in English waters in 1851, for yacht masts to have a pronounced rake. Also, it is not necessarily a vertical spar in modern powered vessels when it usually serves to carry such essentials as radio aerials, radar arrays, etc. The mast of a powered vessel also carries the compulsory steaming lights which a powered vessel has to display when under way at night, and flag signals are hoisted on the mast's halyards, or to a yard across it.
In some sailing vessels, particularly junks, the masts are stepped in tabernacles so that they can be lowered if it is necessary to navigate rivers and waterways with bridges. However, they are normally stepped through holes in the deck and their heels, which are squared off, fitted into steps in the ship's keelson, hence the phrase ‘to step a mast’ means to set a mast up. In larger wooden sailing vessels they were held firm in the deck holes with wedges and the area around them strengthened by partners. Except those vessels with an unstayed rig, masts are secured in place by its standing rigging. In square-rigged ships the masts are crossed by the yards, on which the sails are set. In fore-and-aft-rigged vessels the sails are set on the masts themselves. Bipod masts were a feature on the ships of some early civilizations and the Greeks used multiple masts, though this died out in the Mediterranean after the collapse of the Roman Empire and was not reintroduced until Marco Polo reported their use in China in the 13th century. Two-masted vessels go back to this time in Europe, but the vessel of 1350, which could only run before the wind with its one or two square sails, quite quickly became the three-masted caravel of the 15th century. This, with its use of the lateen sail, first on all masts and then on the mizzen alone, made possible the voyages organized by Henry the Navigator and later the exploration by sea by such navigators as Columbus, Vasco da Gama, and Cabot. However, something which did not spread beyond China was the system of staggering the masts of its 15th century treasure ships in port, amidships, and starboard positions, raking them at different angles, and stepping them in tabernacles, mostly without giving them standing rigging. Before the growth in size of ships in the western world which occurred during the 17th century, ships' masts were single pole, or solid, spars, cut from the trunk of a fir tree. However, as the size of sailing ships increased, so did the number of sails and of upper masts. Pole masts were not strong enough or tall enough to carry the larger yards and extra sails, so masts had to be made of several pieces of timber to acquire the required strength, circumference, and height, and these were called made masts. In most ships of the 17th century and later, the lower masts were all made masts, topmast and topgallant masts being pole masts. Very few, if any, sailing vessels in European and North American waters have solid wooden masts nowadays; and the lighter, hollow, wooden ones made up from spruce, and scarfed and glued, that replaced them in yachts must now be almost as rare. All modern sailing vessels have metal masts, and racing yachts have carbon composite ones laminated in moulds for a higher strength–weight ratio. See also mast ship. |
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Cite this article
"mast." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mast." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-mast.html "mast." The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O225-mast.html |
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mast
mast large metal or timber pole secured vertically or nearly vertically in a ship, used primarily for supporting sails and rigging. The mast is as old as sailing vessels, and the oldest sailboats depicted (those of ancient Egypt) had a small mast placed forward and carrying a single sail. The Phoenician bireme had one mast, the Greek trireme had two. Viking ships had one central mast. In the Middle Ages, a topmast was added, fixed to the single mast, to carry more sail; after the 16th cent., topmasts were generally demountable. By that time the building of larger vessels and the desire for greater speed on longer journeys had already brought increase in sails and in the masts—a process that continued until the clipper ships of the middle of the 19th cent. were rushed forward by clouds of sails. Above the topmast was added the topgallant mast and above that the topgallant mast royal. In vessels having more than one mast, a small forward mast is called the foremast and a small mast abaft the mainmast is called the mizzenmast. A platform for lookout on a mast is called a crow's nest. The modern merchant ship often has a mast made of hollow steel tubes, which is used mainly for signaling and for supporting radio antennas and lifts or derricks for cargo. In some modern warships the mast has a steel platform on which are mounted instruments for controlling gunfire. |
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"mast." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mast." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-mast.html "mast." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2008. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-mast.html |
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mast
mast1
/ mast/
•
n.
1.
a tall upright post, spar, or other structure on a ship or boat, in sailing vessels generally carrying a sail or sails.
∎
a similar structure on land, esp. a flagpole or a television or radio transmitter.
2.
(in full captain's mast)
(in the U.S. Navy) a session of court presided over by the captain of a ship, esp. to hear cases of minor offenses.
PHRASES:
before the mast hist.
serving as an ordinary seaman in a sailing ship (quartered in the forecastle).DERIVATIVES:
mast·ed
adj.
[in comb.]
a single-masted fishing boat.
mast mast2 • n. the fruit of beech, oak, chestnut, and other forest trees, esp. as food for pigs and wild animals. |
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"mast." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mast." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-mast.html "mast." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-mast.html |
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mast
mast n.
1. a tall upright post, spar, or other structure on a ship or boat, in sailing vessels generally carrying a sail or sails. 2. a similar structure on land, especially a flagpole or a television or radio transmitter. 3. in full captain's mast (in the U.S. Navy) a session of court presided over by the captain of a ship, especially to hear cases of minor offenses. before the mast serving as an ordinary seaman in a sailing ship (quartered in the forecastle). masted adj. a single-masted fishing boat. |
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"mast." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mast." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-mast.html "mast." The Oxford Essential Dictionary of the U.S. Military. 2001. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O63-mast.html |
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mast
mast a tall upright post, spar, or other structure on a ship or boat, in sailing vessels generally carrying a sail or sails.
before the mast in historical usage, serving as an ordinary seaman in a sailing ship (quartered in the forecastle). See also half mast, nail one's colours to the mast. |
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ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "mast." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "mast." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-mast.html ELIZABETH KNOWLES. "mast." The Oxford Dictionary of Phrase and Fable. 2006. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O214-mast.html |
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mast
mast1 long pole set up on the keel of a ship to support the sails. OE. mæst = (M)LG., (M)Du., (O)HG. mast :- WGmc. *masta :- IE. *mazdos, whence poss. L. mālus mast, OIr. matan club.
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T. F. HOAD. "mast." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "mast." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-mast.html T. F. HOAD. "mast." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-mast.html |
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mast
mast A fruit, especially of beech but also of oak, elm, and other forest trees, formerly often used as food for pigs.
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MICHAEL ALLABY. "mast." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "mast." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-mast.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "mast." A Dictionary of Ecology. 2004. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O14-mast.html |
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mast
mast2 fruit of forest-trees, esp. as food for swine. OE. mæst = MDu., MLG., OHG. mast :- WGmc. *masta.
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "mast." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "mast." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-mast1.html T. F. HOAD. "mast." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-mast1.html |
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mast
mast A fruit, especially of beech but also of oak and other forest trees, often used as a food for pigs.
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Cite this article
MICHAEL ALLABY. "mast." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. MICHAEL ALLABY. "mast." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-mast.html MICHAEL ALLABY. "mast." A Dictionary of Plant Sciences. 1998. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O7-mast.html |
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mast
mast See milk, fermented.
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DAVID A. BENDER. "mast." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. DAVID A. BENDER. "mast." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-mast.html DAVID A. BENDER. "mast." A Dictionary of Food and Nutrition. 2005. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O39-mast.html |
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mast
mast •aghast, avast, Belfast, blast, cast, caste, contrast, fast, last, mast, miscast, outlast, past, rat-arsed, unsurpassed, vast
•steadfast • lightfast • holdfast
•sunfast • colourfast • flabbergast
•simulcast • telecast • typecast
•forecast • broadcast • sportscast
•downcast
•outcast, outcaste
•newscast • roughcast • upcast
•opencast • worm cast • sandblast
•Elastoplast • counterblast • mainmast
•mizzenmast • topmast • foremast
•fly-past
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Cite this article
"mast." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. 10 Feb. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "mast." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Encyclopedia.com. (February 10, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-mast.html "mast." Oxford Dictionary of Rhymes. 2007. Retrieved February 10, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O233-mast.html |
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