Link Centre Dictionary

belay

be·lay

UK/bɪˈleɪ/ US/bɪˈleɪ/ uncommon obsolete
noun (1) verb (2)

noun

1.

something to which a mountain climber''s rope can be secured

verb

1.

turn a rope round an object or person in order to secure it or him

2.

fasten a boat to a bitt, pin, or cleat

Origin

From Middle English beleggen, bileggen, from Old English beleċġan (“to cover, invest, surround, afflict, attribute to, charge with, accuse”), From Proto-West Germanic *bilaggjan, equivalent to be- (“about, around”) + lay. Cognate with Dutch beleggen (“to cover, overlay, belay”), German belegen (“to cover, occupy, belay”), Swedish belägga (“to pave”).

Phrases

  • belay device
  • belay my last

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.