cais·son

(kā′sŏn′, -sən)

1. A watertight structure within which construction work is carried on under water.

2. See camel.

3. A large box open at the top and one side, designed to fit against the side of a ship and used to repair damaged hulls under water. Also called cofferdam.

4. A floating structure used to close off the entrance to a dock or canal lock.

a. A horse-drawn vehicle, usually two-wheeled, used to carry artillery ammunition and coffins at military funerals.

b. A large box used to hold ammunition.

[French, from Old French, large box, alteration (influenced by caisse, chest) of casson, from Italian cassone, augmentative of cassa, box, from Latin capsa.]

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

caisson

(kəˈsuːn; ˈkeɪsən)

1. (Civil Engineering) a watertight chamber open at the bottom and containing air under pressure, used to carry out construction work under water

2. (Civil Engineering) a similar unpressurized chamber

3. (General Engineering) a watertight float filled with air, used to raise sunken ships. See also camel²

4. (General Engineering) a watertight structure placed across the entrance of a basin, dry dock, etc, to exclude water from it

5. (Firearms, Gunnery, Ordnance & Artillery)

a. a box containing explosives, formerly used as a mine

b. an ammunition chest

c. a two-wheeled vehicle containing an ammunition chest

6. (Architecture) another name for coffer³

[C18: from French, assimilated to caisse case²]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

cais•son

(ˈkeɪ sɒn, -sən)

n.

1. any of various structures used as a protective environment for workers, esp. one consisting of a pressurized, watertight chamber for use in underwater construction.

a. a float for raising a sunken vessel.

b. a watertight structure built against a damaged hull to render it watertight.

3. a two-wheeled wagon, used for carrying artillery ammunition.

4. an ammunition chest.

5. coffer (def. 4).

[1695–1705; < French, Middle French < Old Provençal, derivative of caissa box (see case²)]

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

Noun	1.	caisson - an ornamental sunken panel in a ceiling or dome coffer, lacuna panel - sheet that forms a distinct (usually flat and rectangular) section or component of something
	2.	caisson - a two-wheeled military vehicle carrying artillery ammunition military vehicle - vehicle used by the armed forces armed forces, armed services, military, military machine, war machine - the military forces of a nation; "their military is the largest in the region"; "the military machine is the same one we faced in 1991 but now it is weaker"
	3.	caisson - a chest to hold ammunition ammunition chest chest - box with a lid; used for storage; usually large and sturdy
	4.	caisson - large watertight chamber used for construction under water cofferdam, pneumatic caisson chamber - a natural or artificial enclosed space

Translations

kasuunisulkuportti

caisson

[ˈkeɪsən] N (Mech) → cajón m hidráulico (Naut) → cajón m de suspensión; [of dry-dock] → puerta f de dique (Mil) → cajón m de municiones

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

caisson

(Mil) → Munitionskiste f; (= wagon) → Munitionswagen m

(Tech: = underwater caisson) → Senkkasten m, → Caisson m

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

Mentioned in

References in classic literature

A battery of artillery followed, the cannoneers riding with folded arms on limber and caisson. And still the interminable procession came out of the obscurity to south and passed into the obscurity to north, with never a sound of voice, nor hoof, nor wheel.

View in context

At a few steps distant from the vehicle he now found a company of some thirty stragglers collected around an immense fire, which they were feeding with planks, caisson covers, wheels, and broken carriages.

The stragglers who flocked in masses to the banks of the Beresina found there, unhappily, an immense number of carriages, caissons, and articles of all kinds which the army had been forced to abandon when effecting its passage of the river on the 27th and 28th of November.

Find men you can trust, and the moment Fournier had crossed the bridge, burn, without pity, huts, equipages, caissons, carriages,--EVERYTHING!

View in context

He could also, by the gleam of bayonets visible through the smoke, make out moving masses of infantry and narrow lines of artillery with green caissons.

View in context

And here and now, my friends, any one can assure you on his honor, and by all that is sacred, that NEVER, no, never since there have been men on earth, never in this world has there been such a fricasse of an army, caissons, transports, artillery and all, in such snow as that and under such a pitiless sky.

View in context

Officials and media gathered at the site on the industrial west of the island on Tuesday to witness the installation of the final caisson, a retaining structure used to build the wharf in the first phase of the multi-billion dollar scheme.

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To complete the job, a convoy of trucks delivered the drill rig, including a 6-foot-wide steel caisson that was used to shore up the walls of the dry well as the permanent concrete pieces were set into place.

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A horse-drawn caisson carrying the senator's casket led a procession of mourners from the academy's chapel to its cemetery following a private service.

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Pipetech has launched a new Active Caisson Management service following a number of recent projects with North Sea operators.

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