1
: the forward part of the upper deck of a ship
2
: the crew's quarters usually in a ship's bow
Examples of forecastle in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
She was hit by several bombs, one of which penetrated her forecastle and detonated her forward ammunition magazines, the Naval History and Heritage Command said.
—
Jenna Prestininzi, Detroit Free Press, 5 Dec. 2024
Meanwhile, the decks in the forecastle (front to landlubbers) went from vertical to horizontal as the oddity became a floating laboratory.
—David Szondy, New Atlas, 12 July 2024
Visitors this weekend can experience dance in the massive cargo hold, the forecastle where the crew ate and slept, the captain’s saloon and other areas.
—Karu F. Daniels, New York Daily News, 23 May 2024
Inside a cramped lab in the Blue Heron’s forecastle, Megan Corum, one of Branstrator’s grad students, used a microscope hooked to a widescreen monitor to show me a few of these creatures, captured in a drop of Lake Superior water.
—Tim Folger, National Geographic, 2 Dec. 2020
Pursuing the Madame Gu Built by the Dutch firm Feadship and put into service in 2013, the Madame Gu has a large helicopter pad on its forecastle with a hangar underneath that can double as a squash court when the chopper isn’t on board.
—Julian E. Barnes, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2022
On the forecastle deck, in the control room, a cheerful, brown-haired Texan named Cassie Bongiovanni sat before four large monitors, which had been bolted to the table.
—Ben Taub, The New Yorker, 10 May 2020
The two Advanced Gun Systems were designed to hide their 31.5-foot-long barrels until the moment of firing, reducing the turrets to two metallic lumps on the forecastle.
—Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 5 Aug. 2019
In moments of leisure, the crew of the Pequod lie in the forecastle swapping tales of women and wandering, singing shanties and dancing jigs.
—The Economist, 18 July 2019
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Jenna Prestininzi, Detroit Free Press, 5 Dec. 2024
Meanwhile, the decks in the forecastle (front to landlubbers) went from vertical to horizontal as the oddity became a floating laboratory.
—David Szondy, New Atlas, 12 July 2024
Visitors this weekend can experience dance in the massive cargo hold, the forecastle where the crew ate and slept, the captain’s saloon and other areas.
—Karu F. Daniels, New York Daily News, 23 May 2024
Inside a cramped lab in the Blue Heron’s forecastle, Megan Corum, one of Branstrator’s grad students, used a microscope hooked to a widescreen monitor to show me a few of these creatures, captured in a drop of Lake Superior water.
—Tim Folger, National Geographic, 2 Dec. 2020
Pursuing the Madame Gu Built by the Dutch firm Feadship and put into service in 2013, the Madame Gu has a large helicopter pad on its forecastle with a hangar underneath that can double as a squash court when the chopper isn’t on board.
—Julian E. Barnes, New York Times, 1 Dec. 2022
On the forecastle deck, in the control room, a cheerful, brown-haired Texan named Cassie Bongiovanni sat before four large monitors, which had been bolted to the table.
—Ben Taub, The New Yorker, 10 May 2020
The two Advanced Gun Systems were designed to hide their 31.5-foot-long barrels until the moment of firing, reducing the turrets to two metallic lumps on the forecastle.
—Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, 5 Aug. 2019
In moments of leisure, the crew of the Pequod lie in the forecastle swapping tales of women and wandering, singing shanties and dancing jigs.
—The Economist, 18 July 2019
Cite this Entry
“Forecastle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/forecastle. Accessed 8 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
forecastle
noun
fore·cas·tle
ˈfōk-səl 
ˈfōr-ˌkas-əl,
ˈfȯr-
variants
or fo'c'sle
ˈfōk-səl
1
: the forward part of the upper deck of a ship
2
: the living area for the crew in the front part of a ship
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