Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun A portable apparatus having a container with compressed air, a regulator that is equipped with a mouthpiece and adjusts the pressure of the released air to match the surrounding pressure, and often a buoyancy compensator, used for breathing under water.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • noun An apparatus carried by a diver, which includes a tank holding a mixture of oxygen and other gases, used for breathing underwater.
  • verb rare To perform scuba diving.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • noun a device (trade name Aqua-Lung) that lets divers breathe under water; scuba is an acronym for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[s(elf-)c(ontained) u(nderwater) b(reathing) a(pparatus).]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

Acronym of self-contained underwater breathing apparatus

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Examples

  • While the term scuba stands for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus, the scuba diving kit consists of more than an air tank, facemask and a mouthpiece on a hose.

    xml's Blinklist.com 2008

  • While the term scuba stands for self-contained underwater breathing apparatus, the scuba diving kit consists of more than an air tank, facemask and a mouthpiece on a hose.

    xml's Blinklist.com 2008

  • A scientist and doctor who invented a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus used by the military in World War II and later coined the term "scuba," an acronym by which such systems are widely known.

    The Seattle Times 2011

  • A scientist and doctor who invented a self-contained underwater breathing apparatus used by the military in World War II and later coined the term "scuba," an acronym by which such systems are widely known.

    The Seattle Times 2011

  • Getting certified in scuba can be pricey, averaging ~$300 for training and certification, figure another ~$100 for theopen water dive course, pricey equipment if you decide to invest in owning, and also pricey if you rent.

    SCUBA! « Biodork 2010

  • PALCA: Well, it reminded me of like a resort course in scuba diving.

    Space Tourism: To Infinity And ... Right Back To Earth 2010

  • So I'll just post the winner's future perfect tense tale replete with a dancing bear (belatedly known as Cuthbert) having sex in scuba gear behind the cut.

    We Have a Winner! marshallpayne1 2009

  • Passengers will be able to keep breathing underwater through an integrated tank of compressed air similar to what is used in scuba diving.

    Boing Boing 2008

  • Passengers will be able to keep breathing underwater through an integrated tank of compressed air similar to what is used in scuba diving.

    It’s a Convertible?! 2008

  • Here, this is a top secret from the freeper site, but they have camel operatives that are trained in scuba technology and underwater demolitions.

    Think Progress » Pentagon Approves $11 Billion Contract For Useless Weapons System 2006

Comments

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  • Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus

    February 28, 2007