gondola
UK /ˈɡɒn.də.lə/ · US /ˈɡɑndələ/ noun, verb
Forms gondolas gondole gondolaing gondolaed
- noun A small long, narrow boat with a high prow and stern, propelled with a single oar, especially in Venice.
- noun An enclosed car attached to a cable mechanically lifted up the side of a mountain; an enclosed ski lift; a cable car.
- noun The car or basket of a hot-air balloon, airship, zeppelin, etc.
- noun The hanging cart in which a glass-cleaning worker stands to clean exterior glass on tall buildings.
- noun That part of a transporter bridge that carries passengers, vehicles, along the length of the bridge span.
- noun (rail transport, US) A type of open railway car with low sides, used to carry heavy freight such as crushed rock or steel.
- noun A free-standing display unit in a supermarket or other retail store, where goods are shelved or hung on pegs or hooks for sale; An end bay; A parasite display.
- verb To travel by gondola.
Synonyms
Etymology
Borrowed from Italian gondola, from Venetan góndoƚa. Possibly from Byzantine Greek κοντοῦρα (kontoûra, “cutter, kind of ship”).
Webster’s 1913
- noun A long, narrow boat with a high prow and stern, used in the canals of Venice. A gondola is usually propelled by one or two oarsmen who stand facing the prow, or by poling. A gondola for passengers has a small open cabin amidships, for their protection against the sun or rain. A sumptuary law of Venice required that gondolas should be painted black, and they are customarily so painted now.
- noun A flat-bottomed boat for freight. [U. S.]
Etymology [It., dim. of gonda a gondola; cf. LL. gandeia a kind of boat, Gr. gondole gondola, cup.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “gondola”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details