Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A length of flexible wood or metal used to hold the ribs of a ship in place while the exterior planking or plating is being applied.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. An obsolete or archaic form of ribbon.
- n. In ship-building: A piece of timber extending the length of the square body of a vessel, used to secure the frames in position until the outside planking is put on.
- n. A square timber of the slip fastened lengthwise in the bilgeways to prevent the timbers of the cradle from slipping outward during launching. See cut under launching-ways.
- n. A scantling of wood, about 15 feet long and 4 inches square, used in rack-lashing gun-platforms to keep the platform secure: also used for mortar-platforms. Two rib-bands accompany every platform.
Wiktionary
- n. shipbuilding A long, narrow strip of timber bent and bolted longitudinally to the ribs of a vessel, to hold them in position and give rigidity to the framework.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A ribbon.
- n. (Shipbuilding) A long, narrow strip of timber bent and bolted longitudinally to the ribs of a vessel, to hold them in position, and give rigidity to the framework.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a ribbon used as a decoration
Etymologies
- rib + band (Wiktionary)
- rib + band1. (American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition)
Examples
“The women wear a broad bone lace ruff about their necks, and a narrow edging of the same sort round their caps, which are in the form of the charity girls 'caps in England; but as they must not bind them on with any kind of ribband, they look rather”
A Year's Journey through France and Part of Spain, Volume II (of 2)
“Was it that blufliing ribband, which is now the perpetual ornament of your perfon? or was it that regiment, wliich you afterwards (a thing unprece - dented among foldiers) fold to Colonel Gifborne? or was it that government, the full pay of which. you arc contented to hold, with the half-pay of an Iri (h Colonel?”
“The window-curtains, only of white cotton, were tied up with knots of pale green ribband.”
“Do not say that money matters are hopeless, a firm resolution not to buy so much as a yard of ribband will soon effect wonders you are little aware of.”
“Her name used to soar like a small bird, or flutter inevery passing breeze like a ribband.”
“Lady L. took notice of her wrist being bound round with a broad black ribband, and asked, if it were hurt?”
“They made a strict search for them; that I can see, by the disorderly manner they have left all things in: for you know that I am such an observer of method, that I can go to a bit of ribband, or lace, or edging, blindfold.”
“He had his tartan plaid thrown about him, a large blue bonnet with a knot of black ribband like a cockade, a brown short coat of a kind of duffil, a tartan waistoat with gold buttons and gold button-holes, a bluish philibeg, and tartan hose.”
“Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue:”
“Since my last, I have heard nothing more concerning the ribband; but I take it for granted it will be disposed of soon.”
Letters to his son on The Art of Becoming a Man of the World and a Gentleman
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘ribband’.
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Some Ship-building Terms
Ship builders' terms, from stem to stern (these words aren't on the list).
lay, ram, rib, ribband, round-up, shelf, beam, deck-beam, shore, sny, spale, sponson and 248 more...
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The Aubrey/Maturin List I'm Gonna Mak...
I'm wading through Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey/Maturin novels one by one, and someday, I'll wade through them again and list all the words I learned while reading them.
Edit: I started ma...studdingsail, carronade, mumchance, grumlin-futtocks, crosscat-harpings, holystone, sennit, orlop, orchitis, negus, kevel, altumal and 1112 more...
Tweets
Looking for tweets for ribband.
chained_bear "'...since then we have reached not only the fashion-pieces but the transoms and the ribbands. There are only the counters, and then we start planking.'"
--Patrick O'Brian, The Nutmeg of Consolation, 23 Mar 6, 2008