What is "galley"

Caboose \Ca*boose"\ (k[.a]*b[=oo]s"), n. [Cf. D. kabuis, kombuis, Dan. kabys, Sw. kabysa, G. kabuse a little room or hut. The First part of the word seems to be allied to W. cab cabin, booth. Cf. Cabin.] [Written also camboose.]

1. (Naut.) A house on deck, where the cooking is done; -- commonly called the galley.

2. (Railroad) A car used on freight or construction trains as travelling quarters for brakemen, workmen, etc.; a tool car. It usually is the last car of the train. [U. S.]

13c., "seagoing vessel having both sails and oars," from Old French galie, galee "boat, warship, galley," from Medieval Latin galea or Catalan galea, from Late Greek galea, of unknown origin. The word has made its way into most Western European languages. Originally "low, flat-built seagoing vessel of one deck," once a common type in the Mediterranean. Meaning "cooking range or cooking room on a ship" dates from 1750.\n

\nThe printing sense of galley, "oblong tray that holds the type once set," is from 1650s, from French galée in the same sense, in reference to the shape of the tray. As a short form of galley-proof it is attested from 1890.

n. 1 (context nautical English) A long, slender ship propelled primarily by oars, whether having masts and sails or not; usually referring to rowed warships used in the Mediterranean from the 16th century until the modern era. 2 (context British English) A light, open boat used on the Thames by customhouse officers, press gangs, and also for pleasure. 3 (context nautical English) One of the small boats carried by a man-of-war. 4 (context nautical English) The cookroom or kitchen and cooking apparatus of a vessel or aircraft; sometimes on merchant vessels called the caboose. 5 An oblong oven or muffle with a battery of retorts; a gallery furnace. 6 (context printing English) An oblong tray of wood or brass, with upright sides, for holding type which has been set, or is to be made up, etc. 7 (context printing English) A proof sheet taken from type while on a galley; a galley proof.

1. n. a large medieval vessel with a single deck propelled by sails and oars with guns at stern and prow; a complement of 1,000 men; used mainly in the Mediterranean for war and trading

2. (classical antiquity) a crescent-shaped seagoing vessel propelled by oars

3. the kitchen area for food preparation on an airliner

4. the area for food preparation on a ship [syn: ship's galley, caboose, cookhouse]

A galley is a type of ship that is propelled mainly by rowing. The galley is characterized by its long, slender hull, shallow draft and low clearance between sea and railing. Virtually all types of galleys had sails that could be used in favorable winds, but human strength was always the primary method of propulsion. This allowed galleys freedom to move independently of winds and currents, and with great precision. The galley originated among the seafaring civilizations around the Mediterranean Sea in the early first millennium BC and remained in use in various forms until the early 19th century in warfare, trade and piracy.

Galleys were the warships used by the early Mediterranean naval powers, including the Greeks, Phoenicians and Romans. They remained the dominant types of vessels used for war and piracy in the Mediterranean Sea until the last decades of the 16th century. As warships, galleys carried various types of weapons throughout their long existence, including rams, catapults and cannons, but also relied on their large crews to overpower enemy vessels in boarding actions. They were the first ships to effectively use heavy cannons as anti-ship weapons. As highly efficient gun platforms they forced changes in the design of medieval seaside fortresses as well as refinement of sailing warships.

The zenith of galley usage in warfare came in the late 16th century with battles like that at Lepanto in 1571, one of the largest naval battles ever fought. By the 17th century, however, sailing ships and hybrid ships like the xebec displaced galleys in naval warfare. They were the most common warships in the Atlantic Ocean during the Middle Ages, and later saw limited use in the Caribbean, the Philippines and the Indian Ocean in the early modern period, mostly as patrol craft to combat pirates. From the mid-16th century galleys were in intermittent use in the Baltic Sea, with its short distances and extensive archipelagoes. There was a minor revival of galley warfare in the 18th century in the wars between Russia, Sweden and Denmark.

A galley is a ship primarily powered by multiple sets of oars.

Galley may also refer to:

• Galley (kitchen), the kitchen of a ship or an airplane
• Galley (surname)
• Galley (heraldry) or lymphad, a charge
• Galley proof, a preliminary version of a publication

The galley is the compartment of a ship, train, or aircraft where food is cooked and prepared. It can also refer to a land-based kitchen on a naval base, or to a particular design of a household kitchen.

Galley is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:

• Garry Galley, former National Hockey League player
• Jim Galley (1944–2012), an English former cricketer and rugby union player
• Mel Galley (1948–2008), English guitarist
• Robert Galley (politician) (1921-2012), French politician