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buoy

 - 4 dictionary results

bu⋅oy

[boo-ee, boi]
–noun
1. Nautical. a distinctively shaped and marked float, sometimes carrying a signal or signals, anchored to mark a channel, anchorage, navigational hazard, etc., or to provide a mooring place away from the shore.
2. a life buoy.
–verb (used with object)
3. to keep afloat or support by or as if by a life buoy; keep from sinking (often fol. by up): The life jacket buoyed her up until help arrived.
4. Nautical. to mark with a buoy or buoys.
5. to sustain or encourage (often fol. by up): Her courage was buoyed by the doctor's assurances.
–verb (used without object)
6. to float or rise by reason of lightness.

Origin:
1425–75; late ME boye a float < MF *boie, boue(e) < Gmc; akin to beacon


5. lift, uplift, boost, lighten; maintain, nurture.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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buoy   (bōō'ē, boi)   
n.  
  1. A float moored in water to mark a location, warn of danger, or indicate a navigational channel.

  2. A life buoy.

tr.v.   buoyed, buoy·ing, buoys
  1. To keep afloat or aloft: a glider buoyed by air currents.

    1. To maintain at a high level; support: "the persistent ... takeover speculation, which has buoyed up the shares of banks" (Financial Times).

    2. To hearten or inspire; uplift: "buoyed up by the team spirit and the pride of the older generation back at home" (Judith Martin).

  2. To mark with or as if with a buoy.


[Middle English boie, from Old French boue, probably of Germanic origin; see bhā-1 in Indo-European roots.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

buoy  (n.)
1296, perhaps from either O.Fr. buie or M.Du. boeye, both from W.Gmc. *baukn "beacon" (cf. O.H.G. bouhhan, O.Fris. baken). O.E.D., however, supports M.Du. boeie, or O.Fr. boie "fetter, chain" (see boy), "because of its being fettered to a spot." The verb, in the fig. sense (of spirits, etc.) is from 1645.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Encyclopedia

buoy

floating object anchored at a definite location to guide or warn mariners, to mark positions of submerged objects, or to moor vessels in lieu of anchoring. Two international buoyage systems are used to mark channels and submerged dangers. In both systems, buoys of standardized colours and shapes indicate safe passageways. Special-purpose buoys are designed for a variety of uses; they include cable buoys, anchor buoys, or race buoys. A mooring buoy differs from other types in not being an aid to navigation but a point to which vessels may be tied up. Secured to a permanent group of anchors by a heavy chain, such a buoy serves as a connecting link between the vessel and the anchors. The use of mooring buoys conserves space in crowded harbours because a moored vessel requires less room to swing with the wind and tide than does a vessel at anchor

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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