: the ends of a ship's beams
Phrases
on her beam-ends
: inclined so much on one side that the beams approach a vertical position

Word History

First Known Use

1750, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of beam-ends was in 1750

Dictionary Entries Near beam-ends

Cite this Entry

“Beam-ends.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/beam-ends. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!