Nautical term for a horizontal spar on a sailing vessel. A yard supports a square sail; a boom supports the foot of a fore-and-aft sail.
Hoist the yard and set the sail.
The yard broke in the strong wind.
Compound of 帆 (ho, 'sail') and 桁 (keta, 'beam, spar'). The reading ほげた is a straightforward combination of the on'yomi of 帆 and the kun'yomi of 桁.