Derrick Meaning
/ˈdɛɹɪk/Definition, CEFR level B2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA device that is used for lifting and moving large objects.
nounA framework that is constructed over a mine or oil well for the purpose of boring or lowering pipes.
Sentence Examples
The derrick towered over the oil field.
He worked on a derrick in the Gulf.
The oil company constructed a tall derrick in the desert.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The oil ____ stood tall against the desert horizon.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ towered over the oil field.
Word Origin & History
Named after British executioner Thomas Derrick, who invented the framework arrangement commonly known by this name to aid in the conduct of executions. First use appears c. 1600 in the publication Ballad Death Earl Essex.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"They count their ships full tale— / Their corn and oil and wine, / Derrick and loom and bale, / And rampart’s gun-flecked line; / City by City they hail: / “Hast aught to match with mine?”"
— 1894, Rudyard Kipling, To the City of Bombay:
"At some places it is possible to load or discharge a vessel without any expenditure on docks or wharves, by dealing with the cargo by hand, or by the ships derricks, or by means of floating discharging appliances while the vessel it moored to buoys in a tideway. […] At low tide it may be impracticable to use a ship's derricks [at a berth]."
— 1945 January and February, T. F. Cameron, “Dock Working”, in Railway Magazine, pages 9, 10:
"Stinky, who had batted a bit over .200 with scant power (two home runs in 66 games in 1933), was being derricked by Navin."
— 2012, Ray Robinson, High and Tight:
"As a rule, when the twirler is derricked, it is because the members of the opposition are beginning to take undue familiarity with his offerings. But this is not always the reason."
— 2014, Addie Joss, Gary Mitchem, Addie Joss on Baseball, page 96:
Explore More B2 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The oil ____ stood tall against the desert horizon.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The ____ towered over the oil field.