chain-walen.
Nautical.
A strong piece of timber secured outside the ship's side, almost abreast but somewhat behind the mast, whose lower shrouds it serves to extend and secure; now usually corrupted into channel n.2
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society > travel > travel by water > vessel, ship, or boat > equipment of vessel > masts, rigging, or sails > rigging > [noun] > fixed rigging > rigging supporting mast laterally > chain-wale
chain-wale1611
channel1672
channel board1858
1611 R. Cotgrave Dict. French & Eng. Tongues Port 'aubans, chaine-wales.
1627 J. Smith Sea Gram. ii. 6 The chaine waile is a broad timber set out amongst them, a little aboue where the chaines and shrouds are fastened together to spread the shrouds the wider the better to succour the masts.
1704 J. Harris Lexicon Technicum I. at Fishes The Anchor is haled up to the Ships Bow, or Chainwale.
1867 W. H. Smyth & E. Belcher Sailor's Word-bk. Chains, properly Chain-wales, or Channels.
This entry has not yet been fully updated (first published 1889; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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