caisson

noun

cais·​son ˈkā-ˌsän 

-sᵊn,

 British also  kə-ˈsün

1

a

: a chest to hold ammunition

b

: a usually 2-wheeled vehicle for artillery ammunition attachable to a horse-drawn limber

also : a limber with its attached caisson

2

a

: a watertight chamber used in construction work under water or as a foundation

b

: a hollow floating box or a boat used as a floodgate for a dock or basin

3

: coffer sense 3

Illustration of caisson

• caisson 1b

Examples of caisson in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Announced in 2013, the extensive land reclamation project saw concrete chambers, or caissons, built in the sea before being drained of water and filled with 750,000 metric tons of sand. —Oscar Holland, CNN, 4 Dec. 2024

The caisson becomes part of the finished structure. —Ari Perez, The Conversation, 10 June 2024

Using a caisson is another way to provide a dry area at a site that is typically underwater. —Ari Perez, The Conversation, 10 June 2024

To this day, old docks, piers and caissons are all submerged along the shoreline. —Caitlin Looby, Journal Sentinel, 2 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

French, from Middle French, from Old Occitan, from caissa chest, from Latin capsa — more at case

First Known Use

circa 1702, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing caisson

• caisson disease

Kids Definition

caisson

noun

cais·​son ˈkā-ˌsän 

ˈkā-sᵊn

1

a

: a chest for ammunition

b

: a usually two-wheeled vehicle for artillery ammunition

2

: a watertight chamber used in construction work underwater or as a foundation