Meaning & use
flag hoist
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Meanings
nouncountable
A set of flags on a ship, or the act of raising a flag, used to send signals or show identity.
Grammar: Countable: one flag hoist, several flag hoists.
Patterns
- a flag hoist on a ship
- raise a flag hoist
The crew prepared a flag hoist to greet the visiting admiral.
Each flag hoist had a different meaning according to the signal book.
A flag hoist was raised at dawn to indicate the ship's readiness.
nouncountabletechnical
The mechanism or rope used for raising a flag.
Grammar: Countable: the flag hoist was broken, so we replaced it.
Patterns
- repair a flag hoist
- a flag hoist on a pole
The flag hoist on the flagpole needed oiling.
He climbed up to fix the flag hoist after the storm.
Word forms
| plural | flag hoists |
|---|
Common combinations
- raise a flag hoist
- They raised a flag hoist to signal the start of the race.
- flag hoist signal
- The flag hoist signal told the fleet to change course.
- hoist the flag
- The sailors hoisted the flag at sunrise.
Synonyms and how they differ
- flag signal
- A flag signal is the message sent by flags, while a flag hoist is the physical set of flags or the act of raising them.
Word family
Commonly confused: flag hoist or flagpole?
flag hoist vs flagpole
A flagpole is the pole itself, while a flag hoist is the act or set of flags raised on it.
Practice
The sailors used a __________ to send a message to the other ships.
Choose one answer.
A flag hoist is the set of flags or the act of raising them to send signals. A flagpole is just the pole, flagstone is a type of rock, and flagship is the main ship.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “flag hoist”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.