rudderless en · ADJ
Etymology
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₁reh₁- Proto-Indo-European *h₁roh₁-(ye-)-tider. Proto-Germanic *rōaną Proto-Indo-European *-tḗr Proto-Indo-European *-trom Proto-Germanic *-þrą Proto-Germanic *rōþrą Proto-West Germanic *rōþr Old English rōþor Middle English rother English rudder Proto-Indo-European *lewh₁- Proto-Indo-European *lewHs-der. Proto-Germanic *leusaną Proto-Germanic *lausaz Proto-Germanic *-lausaz Proto-West Germanic *-laus Old English -lēas Middle English -les English -less English rudderless From rudder + -less.
Meanings
- Without a rudder.
-
(figuratively) Lacking guidance or direction.
As Christian Wolmar said in RAIL 990, our railway is "leaderless and rudderless", and drifting inexorably towards the rocks of total chaos.
2023 September 6, Nigel Harris, “Comment: Leaderless and rudderless”, in RAIL, number 991, page 3:Their deaths were sobering not merely because of the searingly unbearable wrench of losing those two wonderful people, but because it left me exposed as rudderless.
2005, Sean Dooley, The Big Twitch, Sydney: Allen and Unwin, page 23:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| more rudderless | Degree=Cmp | lexicographic | |
| most rudderless | Degree=Sup | lexicographic |
Deriveds
Relateds
Translations (6)
es desnortado (without a rudder, unsteerable, without guidance) · nl stuurloos (without a rudder, unsteerable, without guidance) · no uten ror (without a rudder, unsteerable, without guidance) · de führungslos (without a rudder, unsteerable, without guidance) · de steuerlos (without a rudder, unsteerable, without guidance) · de orientierungslos (without a rudder, unsteerable, without guidance)