abseil
verb
ab·seil ˈab-ˌsāl 
-ˌsī(-ə)l
abseiled; abseiling; abseils
intransitive verb
chiefly British
: rappel
abseil noun
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the Web In daring escapes, students abseiled down multi-story buildings to waiting motorcyclists or swam out through sewers. 
Time, 23 Jan. 2020 Others attempted daring escapes, crawling through underground sewerage systems or abseiling off a footbridge to make their way to waiting getaway vehicles below. Amy Gunia / Hong Kong, Time, 20 Nov. 2019 On a recent gusty day, dangling above the waves, mechanics abseiled down the 40-metre-long blades for routine maintenance. The Economist, 31 Aug. 2019 That was the febrile atmosphere on July 4th, when British marines abseiled onto the deck of the Grace 1 in Gibraltarian waters. The Economist, 22 Aug. 2019 Most people abseil from rock faces in the process of climbing, for instance. Raisa Bruner, Time, 23 Jan. 2018 Those drills included special forces abseiling down the front of a downtown skyscraper to deal with a hostage situation, heavily armed forces driving in to intercept a bus hijack, a car chase to apprehend an attacker. Paula Hancocks, CNN, 1 Nov. 2017 Some anxious tower block residents have seen contractors abseiling from the tops of their buildings to collect samples of cladding to be sent for analysis. Laura Smith-spark, CNN, 23 June 2017 Over 1,000 feet high, the design features multiple jumping platforms, interior rock climbing walls and abseiling points, with a concert venue, residential towers and retail space attached. CNN, 12 May 2017 See More
Time, 23 Jan. 2020 Others attempted daring escapes, crawling through underground sewerage systems or abseiling off a footbridge to make their way to waiting getaway vehicles below. Amy Gunia / Hong Kong, Time, 20 Nov. 2019 On a recent gusty day, dangling above the waves, mechanics abseiled down the 40-metre-long blades for routine maintenance. The Economist, 31 Aug. 2019 That was the febrile atmosphere on July 4th, when British marines abseiled onto the deck of the Grace 1 in Gibraltarian waters. The Economist, 22 Aug. 2019 Most people abseil from rock faces in the process of climbing, for instance. Raisa Bruner, Time, 23 Jan. 2018 Those drills included special forces abseiling down the front of a downtown skyscraper to deal with a hostage situation, heavily armed forces driving in to intercept a bus hijack, a car chase to apprehend an attacker. Paula Hancocks, CNN, 1 Nov. 2017 Some anxious tower block residents have seen contractors abseiling from the tops of their buildings to collect samples of cladding to be sent for analysis. Laura Smith-spark, CNN, 23 June 2017 Over 1,000 feet high, the design features multiple jumping platforms, interior rock climbing walls and abseiling points, with a concert venue, residential towers and retail space attached. CNN, 12 May 2017 See More Word History
Etymology
borrowed from German abseilen "to lower by a rope," (as a reflexive verb, "to descend by a rope"), verbal derivative from ab- "down, from" (going back to Old High German ab, aba, preposition) + Seil "rope," going back to Old High German seil, going back to Germanic *saila-, neuter noun, akin to Old Saxon sēl "rope," and with gender/stem variation, to Old English sāl, "rope," Old Norse seil, Gothic insailjan "to lower by rope"; Germanic *saila-, etc., a nominal derivative from Indo-European *seh2(i̯̯)- — more at of entry 1, sinew entry 1
First Known Use
1941, in the meaning defined above