brail

Noun · Verb

WordNet 3.0

Noun (2)

  1. a small net used to draw fish into a boat
  2. a small rope (one of several) used to draw a sail in

Verb (2)

  1. take in a sail with a brail
  2. haul fish aboard with brails
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Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Plaice \Plaice\, n. [F. plaise, plais, prob. fr. L. platessa flatish, plaice. See Place.] (Zool.) (a) A European food fish (Pleuronectes platessa), allied to the flounder, and growing to the weight of eight or ten pounds or more. (b) A large American flounder (Paralichthys dentatus; called also brail, puckermouth, and summer flounder. The name is sometimes applied to other allied species. [Written also plaise.] [1913 Webster]

Plaice mouth, a mouth like that of a plaice; a small or wry mouth. [R.] --B. Jonson. [1913 Webster]

Brail \Brail\, v. t. (Naut.) To haul up by the brails; -- used with up; as, to brail up a sail. [1913 Webster]
Brail \Brail\, n. [OE. brayle furling rope, OF. braiol a band placed around the breeches, fr.F. braies, pl., breeches, fr. L. braca, bracae, breeches, a Gallic word; cf. Arm. bragez. Cf. Breeches.] [1913 Webster]

1.(Falconry) A thong of soft leather to bind up a hawk's wing. [1913 Webster]

2.pl. (Naut.) Ropes passing through pulleys, and used to haul in or up the leeches, bottoms, or corners of sails, preparatory to furling. [1913 Webster]

3.A stock at each end of a seine to keep it stretched. [1913 Webster]

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