English

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A capsized ship.

Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Attested since 1788. Origin unknown. Possibly related to Spanish chapuzar (to sink by the head).

Pronunciation

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Verb

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capsize (third-person singular simple present capsizes, present participle capsizing, simple past and past participle capsized)

  1. (intransitive, nautical) To overturn.
    • 1982, “Sexual Healing”, performed by Marvin Gaye:
      Baby, I think I'm capsizing / The waves are rising and rising
  2. (transitive, nautical) To cause (a ship) to overturn.
    • 1819–1824, [Lord Byron], Don Juan, London, (please specify |canto=I to XVII):
      But what if carrying sail capsize the boat?
  3. (intransitive, of knots) To deform under stress.
    • 1944, Clifford Warren Ashley, The Ashley Book of Knots, page 19:
      There are even cases where a totally different knot may result when carelessly pulled. Tie the Granny Knot around any object and pull one end, and it will capsize into Two Half Hitches.

Synonyms

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Derived terms

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Descendants

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  • Dutch: kapseizen
  • >? Swedish: kapsejsa

Translations

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Noun

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capsize (plural capsizes)

  1. The act of, or occurrence of capsizing or overturning.

Translations

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References

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Anagrams

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