α. see ship n.1 and biscuit n. and adj.
β. 1800s– ship's biscuit.
ship's biscuitn.
/ˈʃɪps ˌbɪskɪt/, /ˌʃɪps ˈbɪskɪt/, U.S. /ˈʃɪps ˌbɪskᵻt/, /ˌʃɪps ˈbɪskᵻt/ Now chiefly historical.
A kind of very hard, dry biscuit, typically made from a mixture of flour and water and hardened by rebaking; a piece of this. Cf. ship bread n. at ship n.1 Compounds 3a, hardtack n. 1.Rebaking ship's biscuit (which might be done more than once) extended the length of time that it could be stored without becoming unfit for consumption, making it suitable for long sea voyages. It was often softened in liquid before being eaten.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > food > dishes and prepared food > biscuit > [noun] > ship's biscuit
ship bread1598
bread1625
ship's biscuit1634
pilot bread1788
midshipman's nuts1828
hardtack1830
pilot biscuit1836
pantile1874
Liverpool pantile1899
1634 T. Johnson tr. A. Paré Chirurg. Wks. xix. viii. 730 The strait allowance of four ounces of Ship-bisket, and twelve damaske prunes.
1771 Philos. Trans. 1770 (Royal Soc.) 60 23 They eat salt beef, but seemed most fond of the ship's biscuit.
1795 J. Chisholm Let. 16 Feb. in T. Beddoes & J. Watt Considerations Medicinal Use Factitious Airs (ed. 2) xviii. 100 The only nourishment he took was ship biscuit, pounded and mixed with water.
1884 Colonist (Nelson, N.Z.) 3 May The third hand came after him, and handed him a ship biscuit and a half.
1893 W. Forbes-Mitchell Reminisc. Great Mutiny iii. 27 To demolish twelve ordinary-sized ship's biscuits, during a march of twenty to twenty-five miles, was no great tax on a young and healthy stomach.
1935 Studies: Irish Q. Rev. 24 307 He lived on fruit and ship's biscuit, slept, when he slept at all, on boards, and spent long vigils in prayer.
2013 J. Clark Rathbones (2014) i. 5 Each suitor was..served a plate of dry ship's biscuit and a pot of tea.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2022).
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n.1634