The Collaborative International Dictionary
Buoy \Buoy\ (bwoi or boi; 277), n. [D. boei buoy, fetter, fr.
OF. boie, buie, chain, fetter, F. bou['e]e a buoy, from L.
boia. ``Boiae genus vinculorum tam ferreae quam ligneae.''
--Festus. So called because chained to its place.] (Naut.)
A float; esp. a floating object moored to the bottom, to mark
a channel or to point out the position of something beneath
the water, as an anchor, shoal, rock, etc.
Anchor buoy, a buoy attached to, or marking the position of, an anchor.
Bell buoy, a large buoy on which a bell is mounted, to be rung by the motion of the waves.
Breeches buoy. See under Breeches.
Cable buoy, an empty cask employed to buoy up the cable in rocky anchorage.
Can buoy, a hollow buoy made of sheet or boiler iron, usually conical or pear-shaped.
Life buoy, a float intended to support persons who have fallen into the water, until a boat can be dispatched to save them.
Nut buoy or Nun buoy, a buoy large in the middle, and tapering nearly to a point at each end.
To stream the buoy, to let the anchor buoy fall by the ship's side into the water, before letting go the anchor.
Whistling buoy, a buoy fitted with a whistle that is blown by the action of the waves.
Wiktionary
n. (context nautical English) A small buoy, usually painted a distinctive color, attached to an anchor by a light line and used to indicate the location of the anchor on the bottom.
Usage examples of "anchor buoy".
An anchor buoy rope too short for the depth of water, so that with the anchor down the buoy was submerged.
The anchor buoy had hardly hit the water before the flagship had hoisted another signal for the Jocasta, ordering her commanding officer to come on board.
The pilot put the big seaplane down on the harbor, then picked up an anchor buoy and they tied up.
He got into a rowboat brought by an attendant, and tied the plane to an anchor buoy.