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écoutille

hatch

noun ay-koo-TEEY Rare

Usage Note

écoutille refers to the opening in a ship's deck giving access to the hold or a lower deck. It is a nautical term with no everyday equivalent; the related verb écoutiller (to fit with hatches) is rare. A panneau d'écoutille is the hatch cover.

Examples

"Les marins descendirent par l'écoutille."

Natural Translation

The sailors went down through the hatch.

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