necked

1. 1
   adjectivein compounds

   Made or shaped with a neck or neckline of a particular type.

   The chemist decanted the acid into a necked flask.

   She chose a square-necked blouse for the interview.

   Note

   A word that seldom stands alone: it usually forms the second half of a compound such as square-necked, long-necked or high-necked, built from neck plus the adjective-forming -ed. The compound is hyphenated before a noun (a square-necked blouse). Because it is not comparable, degree goes on the first element instead, giving a longer-necked bottle rather than a more necked one.

2. 2
   verb

   Past tense of neck.

   The couple necked in the parked car during the downpour.

   They necked at the party until a friend interrupted.

   Note

   One spelling serves as both the simple past and the past participle, so it follows have as readily as it stands alone. It also covers verbs with little in common. Couples necked in informal American use, slang lets someone neck a drink fast, and a tube that has necked has narrowed. Whether an object follows helps tell them apart. The neckline adjective is a separate word.

   He necked his pint and hurried out.

   The tube had necked where the clamp squeezed it.

3. 3
   adjectivearchaic

   Cracked or split, typically said of a ship's mast or wooden timber.

   Like a bone with a hairline fracture: whole in appearance but failing along a hidden split.

   The foremast was found necked just above the deck after the squall.

   They condemned the necked timbers and hauled the ship into dock for repairs.

   Note

   A shipwright's word, said in particular of a treenail, the wooden peg that pinned a hull's planking to its frames. A necked treenail had cracked and could no longer hold. It is archaic, so it suits historical fiction or accounts of wooden ships. In modern prose about damaged timber, plain cracked or split will be understood where this word would not.

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