forestaff

== English == === Etymology === From fore- +‎ staff. === Noun === forestaff (plural forestaffs or forestaves) (nautical) An instrument formerly used at sea for taking the altitudes of heavenly bodies, later replaced by the sextant. ==== Synonyms ==== cross-staff === References === “forestaff”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.