An Universal Dictionary of the Marine / Or, a Copious Explanation of the Technical Terms and Phrases Employed in the Construction, Equipment, Furniture, Machinery, Movements, and Military Operations of a Ship. Illustrated With Variety of Original Designs of Shipping, in Different Situations; Together With Separate Views of Their Masts, Sails, Yards, and Rigging. to Which Is Annexed, a Translation of the French Sea-terms and Phrases, Collected from the Works of Mess. Du Hamel, Aubin, Saverien, &c.

by William Falconer

BREADTH, largeur, the measure of a ship from side to side in any particular place: it is usually distinguished into extreme-breadth, ligne du fort, main-breadth, and top-timber-breadth. See the explanation of the plane of projection, in the article Naval Architecture.

As the sides of the ship are formed by a variety of ribs, called timbers, and the areas of those timbers being of different breadths above and below, it is necessary to distinguish them in the construction, in order to form their several curves, and fix the corresponding pieces with more accuracy and precision. The part of every timber which encloses the greatest space from the middle-line of the ship’s length, is therefore called the main-breadth; and the distance between the upper-part of the same timber and the middle-line of the ship’s length, is called the top-timber-breadth.

As the ship is also broader at the midship-frame than in any other point of her length, the distance between her sides in the main-breadth of that timber, is called the extreme-breadth of the ship.

Breadth-sweep, the radius of the arch which forms part of the curve of a ship’s timber; as explained in the horizontal plane. See Naval Architecture.

BREAKERS, brisans, a name given by sailors to those billows that break violently over rocks lying under the surface of the sea. They are distinguished both by their appearance and sound, as they cover that part of the sea with a perpetual foam, and produce a hoarse and terrible roaring, very different from what the waves usually have in a deeper bottom.

When a ship is unhappily driven amongst breakers, it is hardly possible to save her, as every billow that heaves her upwards, serves to dash her down with additional force, when it breaks over the rocks or sands beneath it.

BREAKING-BULK, the act of beginning to unlade a ship; or of discharging the first part of the cargo.

To BREAK-UP, déchirer, to rip off the planks of a ship, and take her to pieces, when she becomes old and unserviceable.

BREAK-WATER, the hulk, or hull, of some old ship or vessel, sunk at the entrance of a small harbour, to break off, and diminish the force of the waves, as they advance towards the vessels moored within.

Break-water is also a sort of small buoy, fastened to a large one in the water, when the buoy-rope of the latter is not long enough to reach from the anchor, lying on the bottom, to the surface of the water. The use of this break-water is therefore to shew where the buoy swims. See Buoy.