anchor watch
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
A watch of one or two men, while the vessel rides at anchor, in port. See BOWER ANCHOR: SHEET ANCHOR.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “anchor watch” mean?
A watch of one or two men, while the vessel rides at anchor, in port. See BOWER ANCHOR: SHEET ANCHOR.
Is “anchor watch” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.