Meaning & use
hawser rope
Last updated
UK/ˈhɔːzə rəʊp/
US/ˈhɔːzɚ roʊp/
Meaning
nouncountabletechnical
A thick, heavy rope used on ships for mooring, towing or anchoring.
Grammar: Countable: a hawser rope, two hawser ropes.
Patterns
- tie something with a hawser rope
- tow something with a hawser rope
The crew threw a hawser rope to the dock workers.
A thick hawser rope held the tanker against the pier.
The tugboat pulled the barge on a long hawser rope.
Word forms
| plural | hawser ropes |
|---|
Common combinations
- a thick hawser rope
- They tied up with a thick hawser rope.
- secure with a hawser rope
- The ship was secured with a hawser rope.
- cast off the hawser rope
- The crew cast off the hawser rope at dawn.
- a hawser rope snaps
- If a hawser rope snaps, the force can be dangerous.
- tow on a hawser rope
- The wreck was towed on a hawser rope.
Synonyms and how they differ
- mooring line
- Mooring line names the purpose of holding a boat to a dock, while hawser describes a heavy rope size.
- cable
- Cable can be metal or rope and is a broader term.
- towline
- Towline refers only to pulling, whereas a hawser can also moor a ship.
- cord
- Cord is thin and light, the opposite of a hawser.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: hawser rope or hauser?
hawser rope vs hauser
Hauser is not an English noun for rope, and is a surname sometimes mistyped for hawser.
Practice
Why would a tugboat use a hawser rope?
Choose one answer.
A hawser is a heavy rope used for towing or mooring ships. Decorating, fishing and flying flags use lighter lines.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hawser rope”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.
Your sentence stays on this page and is not sent anywhere.