backsplice
|back-splice|
/ˈbæk.splaɪs/
weave rope end back into itself
Etymology
'backsplice' originates from English as a compound of 'back' and 'splice'. 'back' comes from Old English 'bæc' meaning 'rear' or 'at the back', and 'splice' comes from Middle English (from Old English 'splecan') meaning 'to join or interweave'.
'backsplice' developed in nautical ropework vocabulary (recorded from around the 18th–19th century) combining the words 'back' + 'splice'. 'splice' itself evolved from Old English 'splecan' through Middle English and retained the sense of joining or interweaving strands.
Initially, 'splice' referred generally to joining or interweaving; over time the compound 'backsplice' came to denote specifically the technique and the finished rope-end made by weaving the strands back into the rope to prevent fraying.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a splice made at the end of a rope by weaving the strands back into the rope to prevent fraying; the finished rope-end formed by this process.
He finished the mooring line with a neat backsplice.
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Antonyms
Verb 1
to form a backsplice in (a rope); to weave the strands of a rope back into itself at the end to secure it and prevent fraying.
She backspliced the halyard to stop it fraying.
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Last updated: 2025/12/27 13:44