cross-staff en · NOUN
Meanings
- (obsolete) An archbishop's cross.
-
(historical) An early instrument, consisting of a wooden rod with a sliding crosspiece, used for measuring the altitude of a star or for surveying.
The cross-staff is a very simple instrument, a calibrated shaft along which a bar slides.
2015, David Wootton, The Invention of Science, Penguin, published 2016, page 188:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| cross-staves | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| cross-staffs | Number=Plur | lexicographic |