capsize

Etymology

Attested since 1788. Origin unknown. Possibly related to Spanish chapuzar (“to sink by the head”).

verb

  1. (intransitive, nautical) To overturn.
    Baby, I think I'm capsizing / The waves are rising and rising 1982, “Sexual Healing”, performed by Marvin Gaye
  2. (transitive, nautical) To cause (a ship) to overturn.
  3. (intransitive, of knots) To deform under stress.
    There are even cases where a totally different knot may result when carelessly pulled. Tie the Granny Knot around any object and pull one end, and it will capsize into Two Half Hitches. 1944, Clifford Warren Ashley, The Ashley Book of Knots, page 19

noun

  1. The act of, or occurrence of capsizing or overturning.

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