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Becalmed: meaning, pronunciation and examples
Becalmed adjective. Of a sailing boat, stuck and unable to move because there is no wind.
How to say it
bih-KAHMD/bɪˈkɑːmd/
2 syllables, stressed on the second (KAHMD).
Meanings
- Of a sailing boat, stuck and unable to move because there is no wind.
- Stuck and making no progress.
Becalmed in a sentence
The yacht lay becalmed for two days, its sails hanging like laundry.
Talks have been becalmed since the summer, with neither side willing to move.
Similar and opposite
Similar:
- stalled
- motionless
- stuck
- stranded
Opposite:
- under way
Where becalmed comes from
From be- plus calm; a sailors’ word since the 1500s.
Test yourself
Which word fills the gap?
Talks have been _____ since the summer, with neither side willing to move.
- fecund
- becalmed
- vernal
Show the answer
becalmed: Talks have been becalmed since the summer, with neither side willing to move.