Nautical Resources

Abaft the Beam

Behind a horizontal line drawn through the middle of the ship, at right angles to the keel.

Abeam
Off the beam or on the side of the boat

Aft
Towards the stern of the boat; to move aft is to move back

Afterguard

The seamen who are stationed on the poop and quarter deck of the vessel, to attend and work the after sails etc.

Afternoon Watch

The watch from noon until 4 p.m. The nautical day begins at noon.

Aladdin Cleat
A cleat that attaches to the backstay over the cockpit, usually used for hanging a lantern.

Anchorage
A place for anchoring.

Astern
In the direction of, or behind, the stern.

Aweather

Toward the weather or windward side of the vessel. The opposite of Alee.

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Back (to)

To brace the weather yardarm in so that the wind acts on the forward part of the sail, pressing it back.

Backstays

Ropes forming part of the standing rigging. They stretch from mastheads and tend aft from the masts. They serve to support the masts against forward pull and are named according to the mast they support.

Backwinded
When the wind hits the leeward side of the sails.

Bar
A shoal.

Barge

A long, narrow, light boat, employed to carry the principal sea officers, such as admirals and captains of ships of war, to shore. They were very unfit for open sea.

Bark (also Barque)

In Aubrey's time barque meant barque-rigged, i.e. fore and aft on the mizzen.

Batten
A short piece of wood or plastic inserted in a sail to keep it taut.

Beam

The lumbers that run horizontally across the deck from side to side.

Beam-Ends

A vessel is on her beam-ends when listed to an angle where her beams are almost vertical, and her righting power insufficient to return her to the upright.

Bear away

To put the helm up and run off to leeward. To put before the wind.

Bearing
Direction according to compass.

Before the mast

An expression used to describe the station of seamen who had their accommodations in the forward part of the ship, as distinguished from officers who were berthed aft. Thus a man before the mast meant a common sailor and not an officer.

Berth
Sleeping bunk aboard the boat.

Bight
A bend in the shoreline.

Binnacle

A wooden case or box, which contained compasses, log-glasses, watch-glasses and lights to show the compass at night. There were always two binnacles on the deck of a ship of war, one being designed for the man who steered, the other for the person who superintended the steerage, whose office was called conning.

Binnacle List
A ship's sick-list. A binnacle was the stand on which the ship's compass was mounted. In the eighteenth century and probably before, a list was given to the officer or mate of the watch, containing the names of men unable to report for duty. The list was kept at the binnacle.

Bitter End
The final inboard end of chain or line.

Blue Peter

A blue signal flag with white square in the center, hoisted on the foremast to indicate a vessel is ready to sail. It was a recall to the crew "that they repair on board" and for shoresiders to conclude any business they had with the vessel.

Bluewater Sailing
Open ocean sailing, as opposed to being in a lake or sound.

Bone in Her Teeth
Sailing well underway such that spray is thrown out at the stem of the boat.

Boot camp

During the Spanish-American War, Sailors wore leggings called boots, which came to mean a Navy (or Marine) recruit. These recruits trained in "boot" camps.

Boot Stripe
A different color strip of paint at the waterline.

Bow
Forward end of a boat.

Bowline

A rope fastened near the middle of the leech, or perpendicular edge of the square sails, by three or four subordinate parts called bridles. It was only used when the wind was so unfavorable that the sails had to be braced sideways, or close hauled to the wind: In this situation the bowlines were employed to keep the weather, or windward, edges of the principal sails tight forward and steady, without which they would always be shivering, and rendered incapable of service.

Bowsprit

A large spar which projects forward from the stem of a vessel. Its purpose is to extend the head sails, thereby counteracting the effect of the after sails and keeping the sail plan balanced. It is also one of the main supporters of the foremast, which is fastened to it by stays.

Box Hauling

A method of bringing a close-hauled ship around upon the other tack by throwing the head sails aback, if it refuses to tack and there is no room to wear.

Brace

A rope attached to the end of a yard to haul it aft, rotating the sail.

Brig

A two-masted vessel, mostly square-rigged, but with a fore-and-aft mainsail.

Brightwork

Brightwork originally referred to polished metal objects, and bright woodwork to wood which was kept scraped and scrubbed, especially topside. Bright it should be and work it is.

Bring by the lee

To incline so rapidly to leeward of the course, when the ship sails large, as to bring the lee-side unexpectedly to windward; and by laying all the sails aback expose her to the danger of upsetting.

Broach
A turning or swinging of the boat that puts the beam of the boat against the waves, creating a danger of swamping or capsizing.

Bulkhead
A partition below decks that separates one part of the vessel from another.

Bulwarks
Rail around the deck.

Buoy
Floating marker used for navigation.

Burgoo Various definitions. It was not considered a fancy dish.

1. Oatmeal porridge

2. hard tack and molasses

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Cabin Sole
The bottom surface of the enclosed space under the deck of a boat.

Canvas
Slang for sail. Originally sails were made of canvas.

Cat (to)

To heave the ring of a stocked anchor to the cat head.

Catheads

Two strong short beams of timber, projecting almost horizontally over the ships bows, on each side of the bowsprit.

Celestial Navigation
To calculate your position using time, the position of celestial bodies, and mathematical tables.

Chafe Gear
Gear used to prevent damage by rubbing.

Charlie Noble
Charlie Noble is an "it," not a "he." A British merchant service captain, Charles Noble, is said to be responsible for the origin, about 1850, of this nickname for the galley smokestack. It seems that Captain Noble, discovering that the stack of his ship's galley was made of copper, ordered that it be kept bright. The ship's crew then started referring to the stack as the "Charley Noble."

Chocks
A heavy metal fitting fixed to the deck of a ship through which a line for mooring, towing, or anchor rode is passed.

Ciguatera
A severe type of food poisoning caused by eating contaminated fish.

Clean Bill of Health
This widely used term has its origins in the document issued to a ship showing that the port it sailed from suffered from no epidemic or infection at the time of departure.

Clear the Decks
Remove unnecessary items from the decks.

Cleat
A two-horned fitting for securing a line.

Clew
The lower aft corner of the fore and aft sails.

Clew (to)

To haul a square sail up to a yard previous to furling by means of clew lines.

Clew lines

Lines running from the corner of the sail, known as the clew, to the yardarm and down to the deck.

Close Hauled
Sails and boom pulled in tight, enabling the boat to point as high as possible to the direction the wind is coming from.

Clove Hitch
Two half hitches.

Club haul

A method of tacking, by letting go the lee anchor as soon as the wind is out of the sails, which brings the ship's head to wind, and as soon as she pays off the cable is cut and the sails trimmed. Only resorted to in perilous situations, and when it is expected the ship will miss stays.

Coaming
The raised border around the cockpit, or a hatch to keep out water.

Cockpit

Compartment on a warship where the wounded and ill were tended. Usage now extends to any well or sunken space in the afterdeck of a small craft, with a coaming of about 6 inches.

Companionway
Staircase that leads to the cabin.

Condemnation

Confiscation of a vessel or her cargo, or both, as decreed by a prize court of the belligerent.

Course
Compass heading or the angle of the boat in sailing against the wind.

Coxswain
A coxswain or cockswain was at first the swain (boy servant) in charge of the small cock or cockboat that was kept aboard for the ship's captain and which was used to row him to and from the ship. The term has been in use in England dating back to at least 1463. With the passing of time the coxswain became the helmsman of any boat, regardless of size.

Crabbing
Going sideways due to set (also catching crabs!).

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D Signal
Safety signal, "Keep clear of me. I am maneuvering with difficulty."

Deadhead
A vertically floating log.

Dead reckoning

The term "Dead Reckoning" actually originated from the word "Deduced Reckoning." After making a deduction from a known point at a known speed, one would "Reckon" to be at a certain point.

R.D. Miller BM1 USCG (RET)

Deck Plate
A metal plate fitting on the deck that can be opened to take on fuel or water.

Dinghy
A small open boat, usually carried aboard a yacht for going ashore.

Dogwatch
A dogwatch at sea is the period between 4 and 6 p.m, the first dogwatch, or the period between 6 and 8 p.m., the second dog watch. The watches aboard ships are:

Noon to 4:00 p.m. Afternoon watch
4:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. First dogwatch
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Second dogwatch
8:00 p.m. to midnight 1st night watch
Midnight to 4:00 a.m. Middle watch or mid watch
4:00 to 8:00 a.m. Morning watch
8:00 a.m. to noon Forenoon watch

The dogwatches are only two hours each so the same Sailors aren't always on duty at the same time each afternoon. Some experts say dogwatch is a corruption of dodge watch and others associate dogwatch with the fitful sleep of Sailors called dog sleep, because it is a stressful watch. But no one really knows the origin of this term, which was in use at least back to 1700.

Double Ender
Boat with a pointed bow and stern.

Down the hatch
Here's a drinking expression that seems to have its origins in sea freight, where cargoes are lowered into the hatch. First used by seamen, it has only been traced back to the turn of the century.

Draft
Water depth required to float the boat.

Driver

Sometimes used for the spanker, sometimes for a studdingsail-like addition to the spanker, but in either case, the aftermost sail in a ship.

Duffle
A name given to a Sailor's personal effects. Also spelled duffel, it referred to his principal clothing as well as to the seabag in which he carried and stowed it. The term comes from the Flemish town of Duffel near Antwerp, and denotes a rough woolen cloth made there.

Dungarees
The modern Sailor's work clothes. The term is not modern, however, but dates to the 18th century and comes from the Hindi word dungri, for a type of Indian cotton cloth.

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Ebb
Tide passing from high to low, with the current going out to sea.

El Niño
A warm inshore current annually flowing south along the coast of Ecuador. About every seven to ten years it extends down the coast of Peru , where it has a devastating effect.

Fall Off
To pay off to leeward or away from the wind.

Fathom
Although a fathom is now a nautical unit of length equal to six feet, it was once defined by an act of Parliament as "the length of a man's arms around the object of his affections." The word derives from the Old English Faethm, which means "embracing arms."

Fiddle
Strip around a table to prevent items from falling off when the boat is at a heel.

First Watch

The four-hour watch between 8 p.m. and midnight.

Fishhook
Slang sailing expression for a piece of metal or shroud that cuts or stabs you, the injury usually not discovered until later.

Flying Dutchman
One superstition has it that any mariner who sees the ghost ship called the Flying Dutchman will die within the day. The tale of the Flying Dutchman trying to round the Cape of Good Hope against strong winds and never succeeding, then trying to make Cape Horn and failing there too, has been the most famous of maritime ghost stories for more 300 years. The cursed spectral ship sailing back and forth on its endless voyage, its ancient white-hair crew crying for help while hauling at her sail, inspired Samuel Taylor Coleridge to write his classic "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," to name but one famous literary work. The real Flying Dutchman is supposed to have set sail in 1660.

Flotsam
Floating items of a ship or its cargo at sea, floating debris.

Fluke
The digging end of the anchor; also wind irregularity.

Forecastle (fo'c's'l)

The raised platform at the bow of a ship, often armored, for musketeers. In some ships it was the location, ergo the name, of the crew's quarters.

Foredeck
The forward part of a boat's main deck.

Forenoon Watch

A name given to the watch from 8 a.m. to noon.

Fore-and-Aft Sail

A sail which attaches forward to a vertical mast and at the bottom usually to a horizontal boom. It may also be lifted up at the peak with a gaff. Instead of a square sail which always is set perpendicular to the wind, fore-and-aft sails allow a boat to sail much closer to the direction from where the wind is blowing.

Fouled anchor
The fouled (rope- or chain-entwined) anchor so prevalent in our Navy's designs and insignia is a symbol at least 500 years old that has it origins in the British traditions adopted by our naval service.

The fouled anchor was adopted as the official seal of Lord High Admiral Charles Lord Howard of Effingham during the late 1500s. A variation of the seal had been in use by the Lord High Admiral of Scotland about a century earlier.

The anchor (both with and without the entwined rope) is a traditional heraldic device used in ancient British coats of arms. As a heraldic device, it is a stylized representation used merely for its decorative effect.

Free a ship

Running free when it is not obliged to brace its yards sharp up (move them closer to a fore-and-aft position). The converse of close-hauled.

Full and By

Said of a sailing vessel when all sails are drawing full and the course steered is as close to the wind as possible. Sometimes known as sailing by and large.

Futtock

A name given to the curved pieces of timber which compose the frame timbers. They are named according to their location: first futtock, second futtock, etc.

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Gaff

A spar which holds the peak of a gaff-rigged fore-and-aft sail. Instead of a triangle shaped sail with the peak being at the top of the mast, a gaff-rigged sail is four sided.

Gammoning

The art of binding the rope (and hence its name) which secures the bowsprit to the stem piece and is passed backward and forward in the form of an X over the bowsprit, to enable it to support the stays of the foremast and carry sail in the fore part of the vessel.

Genoa
Also known as genny, usually the biggest jib on the boat.

GMT
Greenwich Meridian Time, also known as Universal Time.

Going to Weather
To sail against the prevailing wind and seas.

Gooseneck
Fitting that secures the boom to the mast.

GPS
Global Positioning System; uses satellites in fixed orbits.

Gudgeon (or Goodgeon)

One of the several iron lugs (sockets) projecting from the after side of the stern or rudder post to support the rudder. Each gudgeon is bored out to receive the corresponding pintle fastened to the forepart of the rudder, which thus turns as upon hinges.

Gunnels
Also gunwhale; the boat railing.

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Halyard

The rope used for hoisting or lowering spars, yards, or sails on their respective masts or stays.

Hanks
Metal hooks used to secure a sail to a stay; to hank on a sail is to hook it on a stay using the hanks.

Hard Over
Turning the wheel as far as possible.

Harden Up
To steer closer to the wind, usually by pulling in on the sheets.

Hatch
Opening on deck with a cover.

Haul Around
Change from a run to a reach.

Haul off (to)

To alter the course of a ship so as to get further away from an object.

Hawse

The general region around the ship's head where the hawse-holes, through which the cables pass, are to be found: it also applies to the air and sea somewhat ahead, where the cables would be if the ship were anchored.

Head
The bathroom aboard a boat.

Headsails

Generic term for all sails which may be set on the bowsprit, or foremast. As opposed to aftersails.

Heave (to)
To stop forward movement by bringing the vessel's bow into the wind and keeping it there.

Heel (to)

To stoop or incline to either side due to the action of the wind, waves, a greater weight on one side, etc. Usually temporary.

Helm
The steering wheel.

Hike Out
Climb to windward.

Hollow Sea

A condition usually occurring where there is shoaling water or a current setting against the waves. The line from crest to trough makes a sharp angle, and consequently the sea is very dangerous.

Holystone
Soft sandstone, often used to scrub the decks of ships. Sailors had to kneel as if in prayer when scrubbing the decks. Holystone was often called so because it is full of holes.

Hull

The part of the boat which sits in the water. When you take off all of the rigging, masts, bowsprit, and anything being carried by a boat, you are left with the hull.

Hull Down

Said of a vessel when it is so far away from the observer that the hull is invisible owing to the convexity of the earth's surface, while the masts are still seen. The opposite of hull up.

Hull Speed
The fastest a sailboat will go, usually dependent on length of the hull at the waterline.

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Iron Spinnaker
Auxiliary combustible engine.

Jack Line
A line run for safety purposes from the cockpit forward to the bow of the boat, inside the rail. Clipping on to the jack line with the lanyard of our safety harnesses we were able to minimize being lost overboard when going forward to crew in severe conditions.

Jack-Tar
A sailor from the clipper ship days, so named because they would tar their hair to prevent infection and make it easy to cut.

Jury mast

A temporary or makeshift mast set up by the ship's crew to take the place of one which has been lost or carried away.

Jetsam
Debris, jettisoned items, floating at sea.

Jib
A foresail. On a cutter this is the forward most sail, as opposed to staysail located between the jib and the main.

Jibe
Also gybe; to turn the boat downwind from one side of the wind to the other.

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Keel

The part of the hull which sticks down lower in the water below the bottom of the hull to stop a boat from moving sideways. Sailboats want to go in the direction of the wind and it is the keel which stops them from moving sideways so that the forces of the sails can drive the boat forward. Sailboats that don't have keels have a removable piece often called a centerboard.

Keel hauling
A naval punishment on board ships said to have originated with the Dutch but adopted by other navies during the 15th and 16th centuries. A rope was rigged from yardarm to yardarm, passing under the bottom of the ship, and the unfortunate delinquent secured to it, sometimes with lead or iron weights attached to his legs. He was hoisted up to one yardarm and then dropped suddenly into the sea, hauled underneath the ship, and hoisted up to the opposite yardarm, the punishment being repeated after he had had time to recover his breath. While he was under water, a "great gun" was fired, "which is done as well to astonish him so much the more with the thunder of the shot, as to give warning until all others of the fleet to look out and be wary by his harms" (from Nathaniel Boteler, A Dialogicall Discourse, 1634). The U.S. Navy never practiced keel hauling.

Ketch
Two masted sailboat that has an after mast forward of the rudder.

Kites

In general, the highest and lightest sails set above royals, such as skysails, moonsails and stargazers; also royal and topgallant studding sails.

Knee

A timber with two arms at right angles or nearly so, used to connect a ship's beams with her sides or timbers.

Knot

A vessel's rate of speed, a nautical mile per hour. Measured by running out a stern line (or log line) knotted at measured intervals which bear the same proportion to a mile as half a second does to an hour. A nautical mile (equivalent to 1.15 miles or 1.852km). Also, any of various tangles of line formed by methodically passing the free end through loops and drawing it tight.

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Lanyard

1. A line to make an object fast or to aid in carrying it

2. The line by which a sailing ship's shroud is secured to a chainplate.

Larboard

The left, or port, side of any craft when facing the bow. Perhaps derived from the 13th century English word laddebord, or loading side; some suggest it goes all the way back to the Norse word hlada bord of the same meaning.

Large

To sail large is to run with the sheets eased off when the wind is from abaft the beam and the bowlines are entirely disused so that the sails receive the full effect of the wind. Also known as to sail free.

Latitude
An angular measurement or distance measured in degrees, north or south from the equator which is 0.

Lay aloft

Order given to the crew to go up into the rigging.

Lazaret
A storage space below the deck in the cockpit.

Lee
The side away from the direction of the wind, also used in context to refer to a sheltered place out of the wind, as in the lee of the island.

Lee Cloths
A cloth hung on the lee side of a berth (the down side when the boat has heel to it) to keep one from rolling out of their bunk.

Lee Shore
A shore that wind blows onto; it is best to stay well off a lee shore in a storm.

Leeward
Downwind.

Leeway

The lateral movement of a ship to leeward of her course, estimated from the angle formed between the line of the ship's keel and the line which the ship actually describes through the water, as shown by her wake.

Lifeline
Stout line around the deck of the boat to keep crew from falling overboard.

List
Inclination of a boat due to excess weight on one side or the other.

Loblolly boy

A surgeon's assistant aboard ship. Loblolly, another form of burgoo, was the name for the gruel or porridge usually served to the surgeon's patient in the sickbay.

Longitude
Distance in degrees east or west of Greenwich, England, meridian which is 0.

Lubber's hole

The vacant space between the head of the lower mast and the edge of the top (the platform which rests upon the crosstrees at the head of a lower mast), through which those not wanting to use the futtock shrouds could go further aloft.

Luff (to)

To bring a vessel's head nearer to the wind, so the sails start to spill wind, by putting the helm down or increasing the sail area toward the stern. Also the order--as in "luff round!" or "luff up!"--to throw the ship's head into the wind in order to tack.

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Mainsail
The main sail of the sail boat set off the mast and main boom.

Marks and deeps

The divisions used in marking a hand-held lead line at the second, third, fifth, seventh, tenth, thirteenth, fifteenth, seventeenth and twentieth fathoms, each designated by bits of leather are called marks. The intermediate fathoms, estimated by the leadsman, are called deeps.

Marline spike or marling spike

A pointed iron pin about 16 inches long, furnished with a round head, used by riggers and seamen to separate the strands of rope when splicing and also as a lever when putting on seizing, marling etc.

Mast

A vertical spar to which the fore-and-aft sails and/or yards are attached. It is held up by shrouds on either side and stays fore and aft. It may also carry a crow's nest or other lookouts.

Mayday
The distress call for voice radio, for vessels and people in serious trouble at sea. The term was made official by an international telecommunications conference in 1948, and is an anglicizing of the French "m'aidez," (help me).

Midships
The middle of the boat.

Middle Watch

The watch from midnight until 4 a.m., which follows the first watch.

Miss stays (to)

To fail in going about from one tack to the other, as a result of which the ship gets its head to the wind, comes to a stand, and begins to fall off on the same tack.

Mizzen

The aftermost mast which supports all the after sails.

Mooring
A float providing a tie off for a boat, usually set to a permanent anchor.

Morning watch

The watch from 4 a.m. to 8 a.m.

Motor-Sailing
Sailing with the motor on and in gear.

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Navigational Hazard

Any obstacle encountered by a vessel in route posing risk or danger to the vessel, its contents or the environment.

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Oakum

A caulking material used in waterproofing the seams between strakes of planking. It is a mass of strong, pliable tarred rope fibers obtained from scrap rope, which swell when wet. The fibers are soaked in pine tar and loosely bundled together.

Offing

Implies out at sea, or at a good distance from the shore, where there is deep water and no need for a pilot to conduct the ship.

Old Salt
A very experienced and/or old sailor.

Onboard
On the boat.

Orlop

The lower but temporary deck in a ship of war, whereon the cables are usually coiled, the sails deposited, and the several officers' storerooms contained.

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P Flag
Signal flag known as the "Blue Peter" [blue square in a white the vessel is about to proceed to sea."

Pay Out
To slacken on a line.

Peak

1. The upper aft corner of a square fore-and-aft sail

2. A compartment in either extreme end of the vessel, bow or stern, referred to as forepeak or afterpeak.

 

Pedestal
Columnar support for the wheel in the cockpit.

 

Phosphorescence
Luminescence

Pinnace

Resembles a barge, but is never rowing more than eight oars, whereas a barge never rows less than ten. The pinnace is for the accommodation of lieutenants etc.

Pintle

One of several pins or bolts on the forward edge of the rudder frame, by which the rudder is hinged to the gudgeons of the sternpost or rudderpost, around which it pivots.

Piping
Boatswains have been in charge of the deck force since the days of sail. Setting sails, heaving lines, and hosting anchors required coordinated team effort and boatswains used whistle signals to order the coordinated actions. When visitors were hoisted aboard or over the side, the pipe was used to order "Hoist Away" or "Avast heaving." In time, piping became a naval honor on shore as well as at sea.

Pitch (to)

To plunge with alternate fall and rise of bow and stern, as when a ship passes over waves and into the hollow of the sea.

Points of sailing

Sailing points may be defined as the different courses followed by any sailing craft when compared to the direction of the wind. They are named according to the angle between the direction of the wind and the fore-and-aft line of the vessel. When this angle is near 180 degrees the ship is said to be sailing with the wind aft, or before the wind. When it is about 135 degrees it is sailing with the wind on the quarter, or quartering; when about 90 degrees it is running free. When the angle is less than 90 degrees a square-rigged ship is said to be close-hauled, on the wind or by the wind.

Polaris
The North Star, the star that is located over the north pole and is the center of revolution for the Earth.

Poop

The highest and aftermost deck of a ship.

Pooped
Having a wave wash over the stern of the boat.

Port and starboard
Port and starboard are shipboard terms for left and right, respectively. Confusing those two could cause a ship wreck. In Old England, the starboard was the steering paddle or rudder, and ships were always steered from the right side on the back of the vessel. Larboard referred to the left side, the side on which the ship was loaded. So how did larboard become port? Shouted over the noise of the wind and the waves, larboard and starboard sounded too much alike. The word port means the opening in the "left" side of the ship from which cargo was unloaded. Sailors eventually started using the term to refer to that side of the ship. Use of the term "port" was officially adopted by the U.S. Navy by General Order, 18 February 1846.

Preventer
Line and tackle which limits the movement of the boom, usually for the purpose of preventing accidents.

Preventer backstay

One of a pair of additional backstays set up temporarily leading from the head of a mast to the ship's side where it is set up with a tackle, and carried in strong winds or when under a press of sail.

Pulpit
Platform over the sprit of the boat enclosed in a metal framework.

Put In
To enter a port or harbor.

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Q Flag
All yellow signal flag meaning "My vessel is healthy and I request free pratique."

Quarterdeck

A term applied to the afterpart of the upper deck. In naval vessels, that portion of the weather deck which is reserved for the use of the officers.

Quay
Wharf used to discharge cargo.

Radar
An acronym standing for "radio detecting and ranging."

Rail
Top of the bulwarks on the edge of the deck.

Ratline

One of the small lines traversing the shrouds and forming rope ladders used by seamen for going aloft.

Reaching
Sailing a course that is neither close hauled or downwind.

Reef
To shorten sail, usually by partially lowering it and tying it off with reefing lines.

Rigging
Standing rigging refers to shrouds and stays, while running rigging refers to halyards and sheets that control the sails.

Rip Current
As in tide rip; water disturbance created by conflicting current and wind.

Rode
The line or chain attached to the anchor.

Rolling Heap
Slang expression meaning ocean.

Royals

Small square sails, carried next above the main topgallant sail, and used only in light winds because their masts are poorly supported and their position is such that they set with a long leverage and have a tendency to bury the ship and retard her progress in heavier winds.

Rudder
Hinged plate hinged to the stern of the vessel used to steer t the boat by turning the wheel.

Running
Going with the wind, downwind sailing (to run downwind).

Running Backs
Running backstays; temporary backstays used to stabilize the mast and prevent undue flexing in the pumping action of the sea over an extended voyage. Usually attached by tangs to the mast opposite to where the staysail stay is attached.

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Safety Harness
A harness, usually made of webbing, worn over the shoulders and around the chest equipped with a lanyard for preventing being swept overboard in severe conditions.

Sailing on a bowline

Sailing on a wind or close-hauled when the bowlines would be hauled taut.

Salon
Also saloon; main social cabin of a boat.

SAT NAV
Satellite navigation unit; uses satellites in moving orbits.

Scope

The length or extent of anchor rode.

Scuba
An acronym standing for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus."

Sculling Oar
A large oar used for propelling a boat by moving from side to side; also used for an emergency rudder.

Scuppers
Overboard drain holes on deck.

Scuttlebutt
The cask of drinking water on ships was called a scuttlebutt and since Sailors exchanged gossip when they gathered at the scuttlebutt for a drink of water, scuttlebutt became U.S. Navy slang for gossip or rumors. A butt was a wooden cask which held water or other liquids; to scuttle is to drill a hole, as for tapping a cask.

Sea pie

A seaman's dish composed of fish or meat and vegetables in layers between crusts, the number of which determine whether it is a "double-decker" or a "three-decker."

Self-Tending
Tacks itself.

Set
The direction of the tide or current, the leeway course of the boat.

Shackle
A metal link which can be open and closed for joining chain to anchor, etc.

Sheet
The lines leading from the clew of a sail with which you pull in or let it out.

Sheet anchor

The largest spare anchor used in a ship, carried in the waist, as far forward as convenient, and kept ready for use in an emergency--the mariner's last refuge.

Sheet home

To strain or haul on a sheet until the foot of a sail is as straight and as taut as possible.

Ship biscuit

Hard bread, much dried, consisting of flour, water or milk, salt, which does not deteriorate when stored for long periods and therefore is suitable for use on board ship for up to a year after it was baked. Also called hard tack.

Shows his true colors
Early warships often carried flags from many nations on board in order to elude or deceive the enemy. The rules of civilized warfare called for all ships to hoist their true national ensigns before firing a shot. Someone who finally "shows his true colors" is acting like a man-of-war which hailed another ship flying one flag, but then hoisted their own when they got in firing range.

Shroud One of a set of strong ropes extending on each side of a masthead to the sides of a ship to support a mast laterally. Shrouds take their name from the spars they support.

Side Boys
Tending the side with side boys, as we know it in modern practice, originated long time ago. It was customary in the days of sail to hold conferences on the flagships both when at sea and in open roadstead; also, officers were invited to dinner on other ships while at sea, weather permitting. Sometimes the sea was such that visitors were hoisted aboard in boatswain's chairs. Members of the crew did the hoisting, and it is from the aid they rendered in tending the side that the custom originated of having a certain number of men always in attendance. Some have reported the higher the rank, the heavier the individual; therefore, more side boys.

Single Sideband
A radio frequency used by boats equipped with shortwave radio.

Slats
Battens.

Snubber
A spring line tied from the boat to chain rode, usually near the water's surface. It helps disperse tension forces. It also prevents damage to the boat by ground tackle and can help in the retrieval of the ground tackle in heavy weather. (to reduce the snap of the rode when it stretched out).

Smoking lamp
The exact date and origin of the smoking lamp has been lost. However, it probably came into use during the 16th Century when seamen began smoking on board vessels. The smoking lamp was a safety measure. It was devised mainly to keep the fire hazard away from highly combustible woodwork and gunpowder. Most navies established regulations restricting smoking to certain areas. Usually, the lamp was located in the forecastle or the area directly surrounding the galley indicting that smoking was permitted in this area. Even after the invention of matches in the 1830s, the lamp was an item of convenience to the smoker. When particularly hazardous operations or work required that smoking be curtailed, the unlighted lamp relayed the message. "The smoking lamp is lighted" or "the smoking lamp is out' were the expressions indicating that smoking was permitted or forbidden.
The smoking lamp has survived only as a figure of speech. When the officer of the deck says "the smoking lamp is out" before drills, refueling or taking ammunition, that is the Navy's way of saying "cease smoking."

Soft tack

Seaman's term for leavened bread as distinguished from hard tack or biscuit.

Soggering
Being lazy and unassuming of responsibility.

Sonar
Sound Navigation Ranging. An acronym for underwater echo-ranging equipment, originally for detecting submarines by small warships.

Spar

A general term for a round piece of timber, very long in proportion to its diameter, used for masts, yards, booms, gaffs, bowsprits, and so on.

Spreaders
Small spars between the mast and shrouds.

Spring Line
A line tied between two opposing forces that has a neutralizing effect on the force vectors, such as those creating by surge. At the dock with a bow line and stern line tied off, a spring line is often added to limit the working movements of a floating vessel even more.

Sprit
A spar that extends the bow of the boat.

Spritsail

A sail attached to a yard which hangs under the bowsprit, and has a large hole at each of its lower corners to evacuate the water which fills its cavity by the surge of the sea when the ship pitches.

Square rig

A general term for all rigs where sails are extended by yards attached to the masts in the middle of the ship and trimmed with braces. The theoretical center of effort of the sail plan is situated forward of the center of lateral resistance, or the opposite of that in a fore-and-aft rig, and is done to facilitate paying off in any sudden change of wind and thus to prevent the sails from being taken aback.

Stanchion

A pillar of wood or iron used for various purposes in a ship: to support the deck, the quarter rails, the nettings, the awnings etc.

Starboard

The right side of any craft when facing the bow. Before the advent of the stern rudder, vessels had their steering oars on the right, or steering board, or starboard side.

Stay

A large strong rope employed to support the mast on the fore part, by extending from its upper end towards the fore part of the ship as the shrouds are extended to the right and left and behind it.

Staysail
On a cutter this is the sail located between the jib and the main sail.

Stem

A circular piece of timber, into which the two sides of a ship are united at the fore end. The lower end of it is scarfed to the keel, and the bowsprit rests on its upper end.

Stern
The rear of the boat.

Stow
To store onboard.

Strake

A range of planks abutting against each other and extending the whole length of the ship.

Strike the Bell

Expression used at sea to denote the divisions of the daily time from their being marked by bells which are struck every half hour, the term "bell" being employed aboard ship as "o'clock" is ashore.

Striking the Flag

Striking the ensign was and is the universally recognized indication of surrender.

Studding sail (stun's'l)

A sail on a special spar, extended outboard of a square sail or sails, for added sail area in moderate winds.

Suit
Nautical term, dating from at least the early 1600s, meaning the outfit of sails used by a ship. The term was revived after World War II, when a Navy ship's complement of electronics could be referred to as its electronics suit, and its total armament might be called its weapons suit. The word is sometimes incorrectly spelled "suite."

Surge
Rising and falling of the sea, usually due to wave action.

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Tack
Change the sail course by bringing its bow across the wind, moving the boom to the other side of the boat when beating.

Tack (of a sail)
Forward lower corner of a sail.

Taffrail

The upper part of the ship's stern, usually ornamented with carved work or molding.

Taffrail Log
Walker log; a propeller drawn through the water that operates an odometer on the boat registering the distance sailed.

Taken Aback

Said of a vessel's sails when caught suddenly or unexpectedly by the wind in such a way as to press them aft, or so as to impart a tendency to force the ship astern.

Tang
A fitting on the mast for securing rigging.

Tar, Jack Tar
Tar, a slang term for a Sailor, has been in use since at least 1676. The term "Jack tar" was used by the 1780s. Early Sailors wore overalls and broad-brimmed hats made of tar-impregnated fabric called tarpaulin cloth. The hats, and the Sailors who wore them, were called tarpaulins, which may have been shortened to tars.

Toe the line
The space between each pair of deck planks in a wooden ship was filled with a packing material called "oakum" and then sealed with a mixture of pitch and tar. The result, from afar, was a series of parallel lines a half-foot or so apart, running the length of the deck. Once a week, as a rule, usually on Sunday, a warship's crew was ordered to fall in at quarters -- that is, each group of men into which the crew was divided would line up in formation in a given area of the deck. To insure a neat alignment of each row, the Sailors were directed to stand with their toes just touching a particular seam. Another use for these seams was punitive. The youngsters in a ship, be they ship's boys or student officers, might be required to stand with their toes just touching a designated seam for a length of time as punishment for some minor infraction of discipline, such as talking or fidgeting at the wrong time. A tough captain might require the miscreant to stand there, not talking to anyone, in fair weather or foul, for hours at a time. Hopefully, he would learn it was easier and more pleasant to conduct himself in the required manner rather than suffer the punishment. From these two uses of deck seams comes our cautionary word to obstreperous youngsters to "toe the line."

top

The semicircular platform which rests upon the crosstrees at the head of a lower mast. It serves to spread the topmast shrouds, so as to form a greater angle to the mast and support it better. Tops are named after the mast to which they belong, e.g. foretop, maintop, mizzentop.

Topgallant

A square sail extended above the topsails in the same manner as topsails are extended above the lower yards.

Topmast

The spar next above a lower mast and below the topgallant mast.

Topping Lift
A line or wire for lifting the boom that runs from the top of the mast.

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Underway
Moving under power of sail or motor.

V-Berth
Usually the forward berth of the boat, located in the bow.

VHF
Very high frequency radio.

Voyol

A large rope used to unmoor, or heave up the anchors of a ship, by transmitting the effort of the capstan to the cables.

Waist

The central part of a ship. The portion of the upper deck between poop and forecastle.

Warp (to)

To move a vessel from one place to another in a port, river, or harbor by means of warps (ropes) fastened to buoys, anchors, or some fixed object ashore.

Wear (to)

To bring a vessel sailing close-hauled to another tack by putting the helm up and turning her head away from the wind. The opposite of tack.

Weather deck

An uncovered deck exposed to the weather. The uppermost continuous deck, exclusive of forecastle, bridge and poop.

Whisker Pole
A spar used to hold out the clew of the jib when running.

Winch
Mechanical device for hauling in a line.

Windlass
Winch for hauling in the anchor chain or line.

Wind Rose
A diagram usually shown on pilot charts that indicates the frequency and intensity of wind from different directions for a particular place.

Windsail

A sort of tube or funnel made of canvas spread by wooden hoops, serving to convey a current of fresh air below deck. It is suspended from a stay by halyards.

Windward
Upwind

Wing on Wing
Running before the wind with sails on opposite sides such as the main on one side of the boat and the genny on the other.

Yaw, Yawing
To turn from side to side in an uneven course.

Yard

A long, nearly cylindrical piece of timber, tapering toward the ends, used for supporting and extending a sail to the wind.

Zincs
Zinc plates attached to the hull to minimize electrolysis (and ultimate failure) of the metal in the rudder and other areas.

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