Mast
/mæst/noun
A tall upright spar on a ship that supports sails, rigging, or signaling equipment.
Did you know?English mast ultimately comes from a Germanic word for a tree-trunk or pole, and its deep history is tied to the same ancestral root that gave English words like timber and tomb in other branches of the family tree.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Indo-European
PIE
*stey-
“to stand, set up”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*mastaz
“tree-trunk, pole, mast”
Old English
OE
mæst
“mast of a ship; pole, staff”
Middle English
ME
mast
“mast of a ship”
Modern English
English
mast
“a tall upright spar on a ship or similar structure”