forestay

[ fawr-stey, fohr- ]

noun
  1. a stay leading aft and upward from the stem or knightheads of a vessel to the head of the fore lower mast; the lowermost stay of a foremast.

  2. a stay leading aft and upwards toward the mainmast of a sloop, knockabout, cutter, ketch, yawl, or dandy.

Origin of forestay

1
First recorded in 1325–75, forestay is from the Middle English word forstay.See fore-, stay3

Words Nearby forestay

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use forestay in a sentence

  • Then the lantern in the forestay bobbed down and up, and he came back to where Trask stood.

    Isle o' Dreams | Frederick F. Moore
  • Two engineers sawed nearly through the mast at its base, while the others cleared away the light shrouds and forestay.

    The Wreck of the Titan | Morgan Robertson
  • Bidding the mate hang a riding light on the forestay, Lowry got his night glasses, and turned them upon the fire.

    Tom Gerrard | Louis Becke
  • Needless to say, we had hoisted no lantern on the forestay since the night the other boats had driven away from us or gone down.

    Foe-Farrell | Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch
  • They had hung a red light on the forestay, and a white light over her port quarter, and lights flitted about her gangway.

British Dictionary definitions for forestay

forestay

/ (ˈfɔːˌsteɪ) /


noun
  1. nautical an adjustable stay leading from the truck of the foremast to the deck, stem, or bowsprit, for controlling the motion or bending of the mast

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012