barnacling
|bar-na-cle-ing|
🇺🇸
/ˈbɑɹnəkəl/
🇬🇧
/ˈbɑːnək(ə)l/
(barnacle)
marine crustacean
Etymology
'barnacle' originates from Medieval Latin, specifically the word 'bernacula' or 'bernaculus', where the root was associated with a small sea-related creature or a type of goose in medieval usage.
'barnacle' changed from Medieval Latin 'bernacula/bernaculus' into Middle English and Middle French forms such as 'barnacle', and eventually became the modern English word 'barnacle'. The medieval confusion between shell-bearing organisms and the barnacle goose influenced the word's usage.
Initially, it referred in medieval usage to the barnacle goose (thought to be born from shells) and related shell-bearing creatures; over time it came to denote specifically the sessile marine crustacean and, by extension, the action of becoming encrusted with such organisms.
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
the act or process of becoming covered with barnacles; the condition of being encrusted with barnacles (gerund/nominal use).
Barnacling on the keel had gone unnoticed until maintenance began.
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Verb 1
present participle or gerund form of 'barnacle'; to attach to a surface as barnacles do, or to become covered with barnacles; used literally and figuratively to mean cling or adhere stubbornly.
The old hull was barnacling after months moored in the harbor, slowing the ferry's speed.
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Last updated: 2026/01/17 15:22