a merchant ship with concealed guns, used to decoy enemy ships into the range of its weapons
Word origin
named from q(uery)
Q-ship in American English
(ˈkjuːˌʃɪp)
noun
an armed combat ship disguised as a merchant vessel to attract submarines within attack range
Also called: Q-boat
Word origin
[1915–20; Q a naval classification]This word is first recorded in the period 1915–20. Other words that entered Englishat around the same time include: camouflage, collage, costar, neorealism, takeout