men-of-war

1 definition found

men-of-war - Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 :

  Man-of-war \Man`-of-war"\, n; pl. Men-of-war.
     1. A government vessel employed for the purposes of war, esp.
        one of large size; a ship of war. [WordNet sense 1]
  
     Syn: ship of the line.
          [1913 Webster]
  
     2. The Portuguese man-of-war.
  
     Syn: Syn. --, jellyfish.
          [WordNet 1.5]
  
     Man-of-war hawk (Zool.), the frigate bird.
  
     Man-of-war's man, a sailor serving in a ship of war.
  
     Portuguese man-of-war (Zool.), any species of the genus
        Physalia; it is a hydrozoan having both medusa and polyp
        stages present in a single colony. It floats on the
        surface of the sea by a buoyant bladderlike structure,
        from which dangle multiple long tentacles with stinging
        cells. Its can cause severe rashes when it comes in
        contact with humans swimming in the area. See Physalia.
        [1913 Webster]