catamaran

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˌkæ.tə.məˈɹæn/, /ˈkæ.tə.məˌɹæn/ (UK); /ˈkæ.tə.məˌɹæn/, /ˌkæ.tə.məˈɹæn/ (US)^[1]

Etymology

It is from Tamil kaṭṭumaram “tied wood”, from kaṭṭu “to tie” and maram “tree, wood”,^[2][3][4][5] perhaps via Hindi or Malayalam.^[3]

Earliest recorded meaning

It first named a raft of logs lashed together, used in the East Indies.^[3][6]

Semantic evolution

In 1804 it was applied to a kind of fire-ship.^[6] It was also used colloquially, from 1833, for a quarrelsome person, especially a woman, perhaps by association with cat.^[6][5] Its modern sense is a vessel with two hulls.^[2][4][5]

Timeline

• 1670s – first recorded;^[3] Merriam-Webster dates it 1673^[4] and the OED’s first quotation is 1697.^[6]
• 1804 – a fire-ship.^[6]
• 1833 – a quarrelsome person.^[6]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A boat with two parallel hulls joined by a frame or deck.
2. A raft of logs or floats lashed together.
3. (colloquial) A quarrelsome person, especially a woman.

Related words

• trimaran

References

1. [1] Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. [1] [2] The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Boston: Houghton Mifflin
3. [1] [2] [3] [4] Harper, Douglas, Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. [1] [2] [3] Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
5. [1] [2] [3] Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, New York: Random House
6. [1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6] Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press