from
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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