English Dictionary

oakum

/ˈəʊkəm/

noun

A material, consisting of tarred fibres, used to caulk or pack joints in plumbing, masonry, and wooden shipbuilding. / The coarse portion separated from flax or hemp in hackling.

The sailor used oakum to seal the gaps in the ship's hull.

意味（1）

A material, consisting of tarred fibres, used to caulk or pack joints in plumbing, masonry, and wooden shipbuilding.

Earlier that morning he had gotten the oakum ready for the deck, soaking the hemp in pine tar.

意味（2）

The coarse portion separated from flax or hemp in hackling.

My eyesight began to fail, from the strain of picking oakum in my cell.