weighted with shot to make it sink??
In a 16th-century galleon, a broken rope send a sailer falling to his death from the upper rigging onto the deck below. The sailmaker sews the dead man into his hammock, weighted with shot to make it sink.

I would like to know what does "shot" here mean? A cannonball? Thanks.

Question

weighted with shot to make it sink??
In a 16th-century galleon, a broken rope send a sailer falling to his death from the upper rigging onto the deck below. The sailmaker sews the dead man into his hammock, weighted with shot to make it sink.

I would like to know what does "shot" here mean? A cannonball? Thanks.

Answer

In this context, I'd thought "shot" were metal pellets (which could be used as ammunition for a scattered coverage), but a quick look at the list of definitions tells us it could be a length of chain. The chain makes much more sense - look at definition 16.

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/shot