rig

Definition

The rigging of a sailing ship or other such craft.

Etymology

From Early Modern English rygge, probably of North Germanic origin. Compare Norwegian rigge (“to bind up; wrap around; rig; equip”), Swedish dialectal rigga (“to rig a horse”), Faroese rigga (“to rig; to equip and fit; to make s.th. function”). Possibly from Proto-Germanic *rik- (“to bind”), from Proto-Indo-European *rign-, *reyg- (“to bind”); or related to Old English *wrīhan, wrīohan, wrēohan, wrēon (“to bind; wrap up; cover”). See also wry (“to cover; clothe; dress; hide”).

Example Sentences

• "The climbers each had a different rig for climbing that particular rockface."
• "We used a ground-level rig to safely learn how to tile a gable roof."
• "Every rig at the truckstop had custom-made mud-flaps."