Word of the Day
4 April 2026
tubbing
A lining of timber or metal around a mineshaft, which is watertight, used to safely penetrate quicksand, water, etc. It can be made of various materials, such as wood, concrete, or cast iron.
Why this one
The name comes from the tub-like shape: rings built up like barrel staves, then made watertight. Ordinary shaft timbering holds rock back; tubbing has to hold water out, which is a much harder job.
In use
Once we hit the wet ground at forty metres we could not go on with plain timbering, so the whole section got cast iron tubbing.
Written by our editors to show how the term is used, not a recorded quotation.