noun
derrick
DEH-rihk
noun
1
A tall framework used to lift and move heavy objects, or to support drilling equipment.
"The oil derrick towered over the flat plain."
"A crane derrick hoisted the container onto the ship."
How to Use Derrick
Learner’s notesIn plain EnglishA tall lifting structure, often seen on oil rigs or construction sites.
Common pairings
oil derrick
drilling derrick
Word Forms
derricked past tense, derricks plural, derricks singular
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Etymology
Named after Thomas Derrick, a 17th-century English executioner whose hanging apparatus gave its name to the lifting frame.