The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Hulk \Hulk\, n. [OE. hulke a heavy ship, AS. hulc a light, swift
   ship; akin to D. hulk a ship of burden, G. holk, OHG. holcho;
   perh. fr. LL. holcas, Gr. ?, prop., a ship which is towed,
   fr. ? to draw, drag, tow. Cf. Wolf, Holcad.]
   1. The body of a ship or decked vessel of any kind; esp., the
      body of an old vessel laid by as unfit for service. "Some
      well-timbered hulk." --Spenser.
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   2. A heavy ship of clumsy build. --Skeat.
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   3. Anything bulky or unwieldly. --Shak.
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   Shear hulk, an old ship fitted with an apparatus to fix or
      take out the masts of a ship.

   The hulks, old or dismasted ships, formerly used as
      prisons. [Eng.] --Dickens.
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