fishplate

[ fish-pleyt ]

noun

1. a metal or wooden plate or slab, bolted to each of two members that have been butted or lapped together.
2. Railroads Now Rare. a joint bar.

fishplate

/ ˈfɪʃˌpleɪt /

noun

1. a flat piece of metal joining one rail, stanchion, or beam to another

Word History and Origins

Origin of fishplate¹

1850–55; fish, alteration of French fiche fastening, derivative of ficher to fasten, fix ( fichu ) + plate ¹

Example Sentences

He learned that fishplates and bolts had been found several feet from the main track, giving rise to the suspicion, never subsequendy confirmed, of sabotage.

From Literature

Investigators there are still trying to understand how the bolts holding down the fishplate could have come unscrewed or broken, although there is no evidence of sabotage in that case.

From Reuters

He used to come and oil fishplates and work on the track and things like that in his younger days.

From BBC

Two T-bar guides made in sections connected by fishplates furnish a track for an automatic dumping bucket hoisted and lowered by steel cable from engine on the ground to head sheaves as shown.

From Project Gutenberg

Not a thing was destroyed; the fishplates, four to each joint, were lying at a convenient distance, and even the bolts and nuts for securing them were disposed in little heaps.

From Project Gutenberg