Meaning & use
yardarm
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Meaning
nouncountabletechnical
Either of the two ends of a horizontal pole (a yard) that hangs across a ship's mast to hold a sail.
Grammar: Countable, usually in the plural ('the yardarms') because a yard has two ends.
Patterns
- on the yardarm
- the port/starboard yardarm
The sailors climbed out along the yardarm to furl the sail.
A small flag flew from the starboard yardarm.
He balanced on the yardarm high above the deck.
Word forms
| plural | yardarms |
|---|
Common combinations
- climb out on the yardarm
- The crew had to climb out on the yardarm in rough weather.
- from the yardarm
- A pennant hung from the yardarm.
- high on the yardarm
- The lookout was posted high on the yardarm.
- swing from the yardarm
- The lamp swung from the yardarm as the ship rolled.
Synonyms and how they differ
- yard
- Use 'yard' for the whole horizontal pole; 'yardarm' means only one of its two ends.
Word family
- yard noun
- The whole horizontal spar on a mast from which a sail is set.
Commonly confused: yardarm or yard?
yardarm vs yard
A 'yard' is the complete pole; a 'yardarm' is just its left or right end.
Practice
The sailor edged carefully along the ___ to reach the end of the sail.
Choose one answer.
'Yardarm' is the end of the pole that holds a sail, which is what you would edge along up in the rigging. 'Yardstick' is a measuring stick, and 'dockyard' and 'boatyard' are places where ships are built or repaired.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “yardarm”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.