rowlock

Etymology

Probably from Old English ārlōc, equivalent to oar + lock.

noun

  1. (nautical, chiefly Britain) A usually U-shaped pivot attached to the gunwale (outrigger in a sport boat) of a boat that supports and guides an oar, and provides a fulcrum for rowing; an oarlock (mostly US).
    Everything smelled salt and there was no noise except the swishing of water and the clop-clop of water against the sides and the splash of the oars and the jolting noise of the rowlocks. 1951, C. S. Lewis, chapter 8, in Prince Caspian, Collins, published 1998

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