grapnel
Americannoun
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a device consisting essentially of one or more hooks or clamps, for grasping or holding something; grapple; grappling iron.
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a small anchor with three or more flukes, used for grappling or dragging or for anchoring a small boat, as a skiff.
noun
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a device with a multiple hook at one end and attached to a rope, which is thrown or hooked over a firm mooring to secure an object attached to the other end of the rope
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a light anchor for small boats
Etymology
Origin of grapnel
1325–75; Middle English grapnel ( l ), diminutive of Old French grapin, diminutive of grape hook, grape
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
At some 500 feet the tanker's ejector flung out a grapnel.
From Time Magazine Archive
A moment later came the most jolting shock of all as the grapnel found a branch that held it fast.
From "The Subtle Knife" by Philip Pullman
Dad went to work getting the grapnel hook ready.
From "Red Kayak" by Priscilla Cummings
With a rope and a grapnel he might be able to get over that wall.
From "A Dance with Dragons" by George R. R. Martin
We pulled in the pole and threw out the grapnel hook, watching the attached rope spin from its coil on the boat floor.
From "Red Kayak" by Priscilla Cummings
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
