mooring

Everyday

1. A place where a boat is tied up, often with a rope to a post or buoy. tree →
2. Moorings are the ropes, chains and anchors that hold a boat in place. tree →
3. «Mooring» is also the -ing form of «to moor», tying a boat up. tree →
4. (figurative) Losing your moorings means losing the things that keep you steady. tree →

In the lessons

In river and sea stories, especially The Wind in the Willows, the Rat's boat is tied up at its mooring. On canals and harbours boats have moorings.

Examples

• The Rat tied the boat to its mooring. tree →
• The boats bobbed at their moorings in the harbour. tree →
• They were mooring the boat for the night. tree →
• The storm tore the yacht from its moorings. tree →
• We found a mooring near the lock. tree →
• Without his friends, he felt he had lost his moorings. tree →

Note

From «moor» (to tie up a boat). «A moor» is also a wild open hill land; different meaning.