snorkel

Estimated CEFR level: C2 — Proficiency

Estimated from word frequency; not an official CEFR classification.

Definition

  1. noun breathing device consisting of a bent tube fitting into a swimmer's mouth and extending above the surface; allows swimmer to breathe while face down in the water
  2. noun air passage provided by a retractable device containing intake and exhaust pipes; permits a submarine to stay submerged for extended periods of time
  3. verb dive with a snorkel

Etymology

Borrowed from German Schnorchel (“(submarine) snorkel”), related to schnarchen (“to snore”). Thus named because of the submarine snorkel's functional similarity to a nose and because of its noise when in use. The anglicized spelling was first recorded in 1945. See, for example, Mark S. Watson, "New Epoch in Sea War", The Baltimore Sun, December 31, 1945, p. 8: "The Germans' earlier quest of the last important objective, it will be remembered, had produced the Snorkel, a long exhaust tube whose vent reached above water and permitted a submerged vessel to discharge its Diesel fumes in open air."

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