caboose
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ca·boose
(kə-bo͞os′)n.
1. The last car on a freight train, often having kitchen and sleeping facilities for the train crew, and used as a vantage point for spotting problems on the train, such as smoking brakes or the separation of cars. The introduction of electronic sensors has made the caboose unnecessary.
2. Archaic
a. A ship's galley.
b. Any of various cast-iron cooking ranges used in such galleys during the early 1800s.
c. An outdoor oven or fireplace.
[Possibly from obsolete Dutch cabuse, ship's galley, from Middle Low German kabūse : perhaps *kab-, cabin; akin to Old French cabane; see cabin + Middle High German hūs, house.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
caboose
(kəˈbuːs)n
1. informal US short for calaboose
2. (Railways) railways US and Canadian a guard's van, esp one with sleeping and eating facilities for the train crew
3. (Nautical Terms) nautical
a. a deckhouse for a galley aboard ship or, formerly in Canada, on a lumber raft
b. chiefly Brit the galley itself
4.
a. a mobile bunkhouse used by lumbermen, etc
b. an insulated cabin on runners, equipped with a stove
[C18: from Dutch cabūse, of unknown origin]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
ca•boose
(kəˈbus)n.
1. a car on a freight train, used chiefly as the crew's quarters and usu. attached to the rear of the train.
2. a ship's galley.
[1740–50; < early modern Dutch cabūse (Dutch kabuis) ship's galley]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Noun | 1. | caboose - the area for food preparation on a ship cuddy - the galley or pantry of a small ship kitchen - a room equipped for preparing meals ship - a vessel that carries passengers or freight |
2. | ![]() railcar, railroad car, railway car, car - a wheeled vehicle adapted to the rails of railroad; "three cars had jumped the rails" freight train, rattler - a railroad train consisting of freight cars |
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