Adjacent Words

Submarine definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

SUBMARINE, a. [L. sub and marinus, from mare, the sea.]
Being, acting or growing under water in the sea; as submarine navigators; submarine plants.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

adj
1: beneath the surface of the sea [syn: submarine, undersea] n
1: a submersible warship usually armed with torpedoes [syn: submarine, pigboat, sub, U-boat]
2: a large sandwich made of a long crusty roll split lengthwise and filled with meats and cheese (and tomato and onion and lettuce and condiments); different names are used in different sections of the United States [syn: bomber, grinder, hero, hero sandwich, hoagie, hoagy, Cuban sandwich, Italian sandwich, poor boy, sub, submarine, submarine sandwich, torpedo, wedge, zep] v
1: move forward or under in a sliding motion; "The child was injured when he submarined under the safety belt of the car"
2: throw with an underhand motion
3: bring down with a blow to the legs
4: control a submarine
5: attack by submarine; "The Germans submarined the Allies"

Merriam Webster's

I. adjective Date: 1648 underwater; especially undersea <submarine plants> <submarine minerals> II. noun Date: 1703 1. something that functions or operates underwater; specifically a naval vessel designed to operate underwater 2. a large sandwich on a long split roll with any of a variety of fillings (as meatballs or cold cuts, cheese, lettuce, and tomato) — called also grinder, hero, hoagie, Italian sandwich, po'boy, sub, torpedo III. verb (-rined; -rining) Date: 1914 transitive verb to attack by or as if by a submarine ; attack from beneath intransitive verb to dive or slide under something

Britannica Concise

Naval vessel capable of operating under water for sustained periods. In the 18th-19th cent., Amer. inventors such as David Bushnell (1742?-1824) and R. Fulton experimented with submarines. In 1898 John P. Holland (1840-1914) launched the Holland, which had both internal-combustion engines (for surface locomotion) and electric motors (for submerged cruising); it was purchased by the U.S. government in 1900. The innovations of Simon Lake (1866-1945) were adopted first in Europe and later in the U.S. By the eve of World War I, all major navies had submarines; the German U-boat was an especially potent threat. World War II saw extensive submarine campaigns in all the world's oceans. The snorkel, adopted by the Germans in 1940, supplied fresh air to the diesel engine of the submerged craft, thus making it unnecessary to surface to recharge batteries. The shift to nuclear submarines began with the launching of the USS Nautilus in 1954. The abundant power provided by the uranium-fueled reactor meant that submarines could remain submerged and operate at high speed indefinitely. Sonar is widely used in navigation and to detect enemy vessels. Subs may be armed with cruise missiles and ballistic missiles fitted with nuclear warheads. Because they are so difficult to locate, they have been of great importance in the forces of nuclear-armed nations. See also depth charge, Trident missile.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. & adj. --n. a vessel, esp. a warship, capable of operating under water and usu. equipped with torpedoes, missiles, and a periscope. --adj. existing, occurring, done, or used under the surface of the sea (submarine cable). Derivatives: submariner n.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Submarine Sub`ma*rine", n. A submarine boat; esp., Nav., a submarine torpedo boat; -- called specif. submergible submarine when capable of operating at various depths and of traveling considerable distances under water, and submersible submarine when capable of being only partly submerged, i.e., so that the conning tower, etc., is still above water. The latter type and most of the former type are submerged as desired by regulating the amount of water admitted to the ballast tanks and sink on an even keel; some of the former type effect submersion while under way by means of horizontal rudders, in some cases also with admission of water to the ballast tanks.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Submarine Sub*ma*rine", n. A submarine plant or animal.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Submarine Sub`ma*rine", a. Being, acting, or growing, under water in the sea; as, submarine navigators; submarine plants. Submarine armor, a waterproof dress of strong material, having a helmet into which air for breathing is pumped through a tube leading from above the surface to enable a diver to remain under water. Submarine cable. See Telegraph cable, under Telegraph. Submarine mine. See Torpedo, 2 (a) .

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Armor Ar"mor, n. [OE. armure, fr. F. armure, OF. armeure, fr. L. armatura. See Armature.] [Spelt also armour.] 1. Defensive arms for the body; any clothing or covering worn to protect one's person in battle. Note: In English statues, armor is used for the whole apparatus of war, including offensive as well as defensive arms. The statues of armor directed what arms every man should provide. 2. Steel or iron covering, whether of ships or forts, protecting them from the fire of artillery. Coat armor, the escutcheon of a person or family, with its several charges and other furniture, as mantling, crest, supporters, motto, etc. Submarine, a water-tight dress or covering for a diver. See under Submarine.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(submarines) 1. A submarine is a type of ship that can travel both above and below the surface of the sea. The abbreviation sub is also used. ...a nuclear submarine. N-COUNT 2. Submarine means existing below the surface of the sea. (FORMAL) ...submarine caves. ...submarine plants. ADJ: ADJ n 3. A submarine sandwich is a long soft bread roll filled with a combination of things such as meat, cheese, eggs, and salad. The abbreviation sub is also used. (AM) N-COUNT: usu N n

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

a. Subaqueous, subaquatic.

Moby Thesaurus

Aqua-Lung, U-boat, U-boot, Unterseeboot, air cylinder, aquascope, bathyscaphe, bathysphere, benthoscope, buried, diving bell, diving boat, diving chamber, diving goggles, diving helmet, diving hood, diving mask, diving suit, drowned, engulfed, flooded, immersed, inundated, periscope, pigboat, scuba, snorkel, sub, subaqueous, submerged, submersed, submersible, sunken, swim fins, undersea, underwater, wet suit