Bowsers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Containers or tanks used to hold and supply liquids such as water, fuel, or other fluids ; a surname ; a plural form referring to multiple individuals or items named Bowser
2. Large vessels or units designed for transporting and distributing liquids like water or fuel ; a family name ; referring to more than one entity called Bowser
3. Equipment or containers for storing and dispensing various liquids including water and fuel ; a proper noun as a surname ; the plural usage of the name Bowser indicating multiple persons or objects

Etymology: "Bowsers" is the plural of "bowser," and the plural is the only part of this word that needs explaining. The sense of a fuel-dispensing tank or pump traces to a real man: Sylvanus Bowser, an American inventor who built the first fuel pump. His company, S.F. Bowser & Co., sold the machines so widely that his surname became a common name for the equipment itself, much as "hoover" came to mean any vacuum cleaner. The plural is therefore a bit of an irony. A surname normally turns into a plural as a group of people sharing it, but here the plural refers to multiple machines, each one a descendant of the inventor's brand. The same spelling also covers the surname itself, so "the Bowsers" can mean a family, while "bowsers" at a petrol station means pumps.

Synonyms: tanker trucks, fuel trucks, water trucks, tankers, refuelers