spread n A pole used on small sailing craft as a substitute for gaff or boom (P 94-57); SPREADER.
T 50/1-64 So I was stood up—I was ready to let go o' the spread, give her the shoulder o' mutton [sail]. T 192-65 [We were] out in our trap skiff with no spreads in the sail; there was too much wind for us to put spread in the sail. 1969 Nfld Qtly July, p. 20 ~ a wooden sprit for extending a sail, usually at the after part of a boat. 1975 BUTLER 55 Since there were no gaffs or booms on those sails, a long stick called a spread from fourteen to fifteen feet long was used to hoist sail. This spread would be put in a loop in the peak of the sail and pushed up until the sail came tight.
