kentledge

/ˈkɛntlɪdʒ/
noun
  1. Heavy iron or lead blocks used as permanent ballast in a ship's hold to improve stability.
    • The shipyard recycled worn-out kentledge blocks into new ballast.
    • Old ships often used scrap iron as kentledge for ballast.
    • The crew loaded kentledge into the cargo hold to balance the ship.
Synonyms
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