subs. phr. (nautical).—The degrees of latitude between 40° and 50° N—the most tempestuous part of the Atlantic: also, occasionally to the same zone in the South Atlantic.
1883. A. BUCHAN [Encyclopædia Britannica, xvi. 146, 2]. The region of the ‘brave west winds,’ the ‘ROARING FORTIES’ of sailors.
1884. LADY BRASSEY, The Trades, Tropics, and ‘ROARING FORTIES’ [Title].
1893. J. A. BARRY, Steve Brown’s Bunyip, 165. They found the ROARING FORTIES quite strong enough for them.
