pontoonern.
/pɒnˈtuːnə/, U.S. /pɑnˈtunər/ Chiefly Military. Now chiefly historical.
= pontonier n.
ΘΚΠ
society > armed hostility > warrior > soldier > soldier with special duty > [noun] > engineer > constructor of pontoons
pontonier1757
pontooner1785
chess man1853
1785 tr. F. de Tott Mem. II. iii. 112 The Captain of the Pontooners [Fr. Le chef des Pontonniers] followed with his Company, without deigning to become acquainted either with me or the Pontoons.
1799 Hist. in Ann. Reg. 283/1 The marquis having sent an officer of pontooners..to reconnoitre the banks of the river.
1832 R. Southey Hist. Peninsular War III. 699 The Spaniards could not prevent the pontooners from completing their work.
1863 B. S. Ewell Let. 11 June in War of Rebellion (U.S. War Dept.) (1889) 1st Ser. XXIV. iii. 960 100 men and 3 officers, to constitute a company of pontooners, to be placed under command of Captain De Veuve.
1917 Times 31 Aug. 7/5 On the night of August 19–20 the Italian engineers and pontooners laid 14 bridges between Anhovo and Auzza.
1999 E. A. Lund War for Every Day iii. 124 Although the average pontooner was a ‘private’ in army rank, all pontooners were skilled watermen.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2006; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1785