Thisglossary of nautical terms is an alphabetical listing of terms and expressions connected withships,shipping,seamanship andnavigation on water (mostly though not necessarily on the sea). Some remain current, while many date from the 17th to 19th centuries. The wordnautical derives from the Latinnauticus, from Greeknautikos, fromnautēs: "sailor", fromnaus: "ship".
A Second World Warpersonal flotation device used to keep people afloat in the water; named after the 1930s actressMae West, well known for her large bosom.
The first voyage of a ship in its intended role, i.e. excludingtrial trips.
Maierform bow
A V-shapedbow introduced in the late 1920s which allowed aship to maintain a given speed with less power, improvedseakeeping, increasedreserve buoyancy, reducedpitching movements, and improvedpropeller immersion to increase performance in rough seas.
A sail controlline that allows the most obvious effect onmainsail trim. Primarily used to control the angle of theboom, and thereby the mainsail, this control can also increase or decrease downward tension on the boom while sailing upwind, significantly affecting sail shape. For more control over downward tension on the boom, aboom vang may be used.
mainstay
Thestay running from the top of themainmast to the bottom of theforemast, or from the top of the foremast to the ship'sstem.
To have all of thecrew of a sailing vessel not required ondeck to handle the ship goaloft and spread out along theyards. Originally used in harbors to display the whole crew to harbor authorities and other ships present to show that the vessel's guns were not manned and hence her intentions were peaceful,manning the yards has since become a display used in harbor during celebrations and other special events.
1. A soldier trained for service afloat in a (primarily) infantry force that specializes in naval campaigns and subordinated to a navy or a separate naval branch of service rather than to an army. Often capitalized (e.g. aMarine or theMarines). Notable examples are the United Kingdom'sRoyal Marines, formed as the Duke of York and Albany's Maritime Regiment of Foot in 1664 with many and varied duties including providing guard to ship's officers should there be amutiny aboard, and theUS Marine Corps, formed in 1775 as a separate naval service alongside the US Navy. It is incorrect, and often viewed by marines as offensive, to refer to a marine as a "soldier" or "infantryman", as these terms refer to personnel of an army rather than those of a marine force. It also is incorrect, and sometimes considered offensive by both merchant mariners and marines, to refer tomerchant mariners as "merchant marines", because merchant mariners are civilian sailors responsible for operatingmerchant ships and are not marines. Marines sometimes are thought by seamen to be rather gullible, hence the phrase "tell it to the marines", meaning that one does not believe what is being said.
2. An alternative term for anavy, uncommon in English but common in other languages.
3. Of or pertaining to the sea (e.g. marine biology, marine insurance, marine salvage).
4. A painting representing a subject related to the sea.
Anhourglass-like timekeeping instrument used aboard ships from at least the 14th century until reliable mechanical timepieces replaced it in the early 19th century. Marine sandglasses measured the passage of time in 30-minute increments to regulate time on watch, to measure a boat's speed, and to assist in determining a ship's position by measuring the time elapsed while she was on a given course.
A vertical pole on a ship that supportssails orrigging. If a wooden multi-part mast, this term applies specifically to the lowest portion.
mast case
A yachtsman's tabernacle. The iron fitting in which the heel of themast is mounted.[2]
Mast partner
The reinforced area of the deck surrounding the hole through which a mast passes as it rises from its step (usually on the keel) to the above-deck area[4]
mast step
The place in the hull where the lowest point of a mast rests, taking the weight of the mast and the thrust imposed by the tension of the rigging, and preventing lateral and fore and aft movement of the bottom of the mast. With a wooden hull and mast, this is usually achieved by having a socket cut in the top of thekeelson, afloor or some other major structural component. A tenon cut into the bottom of the mast sits snugly in the socket.[5] With a deck-stepped aluminium mast, the step may consist of a metal fitting bolted to the deck, to which bolts a matching fitting at the bottom of the mast.
A small platform partway up the mast, just above the height of the mast's mainyard. Alookout is stationed here, and men who are working on the main yard will embark from here. See alsocrow's nest.
masthead light
A whiterunning light displayed at the front of a vessel.
A traditional Royal Navy term for an ordinarysailor.
material
Military equipages of all descriptions for the naval services. The bombs, blankets, beans, and bulletins of the Navy and Marine Corps. Taken from Nelson's British navy as the US services became professional. See alsomateriel – military supplies, equipment and weapons.
A collective term for all merchant ships registered in a given country and the civilians (especially those of that nationality) who man them; the ships and personnel in combination are said to constitute that country'smerchant marine. Called themerchant navy in the United Kingdom and some other countries.
merchant mariner
A civilian officer or sailor who serves in themerchant marine. Sometimes such personnel are incorrectly called "merchant marines", but both merchant mariners andmarines frown on this term; although merchant mariners are part of the merchant marine, they are civilians and are not in any way marines, which are a specialized type of military personnel.
A name bestowed upon themerchant marine of the United Kingdom by KingGeorge V, and since adopted by some other countries as well. The merchant navy's personnel are civilians, and the term "merchant navy" does not imply that they or their ships are a part of the navy. Synonymous with the termmerchant marine.
A system of catering in which a standard ration is issued to amess supplemented by a money allowance, which the mess may use to buy additional victuals from thepurser's stores or elsewhere. Each mess was autonomous and self-regulating. Seaman cooks, often members of the mess, prepared the meals and took them, in a tin canteen, to thegalley to be cooked by the ship's cooks. As distinct from "cafeteria messing" where food is issued to an individual hand, which is now the general practice.
A measurement of the initial static stability of a vessel afloat, calculated as the distance between hercenter of gravity and hermetacenter. A vessel with a large metacentric heightrolls more quickly and therefore more uncomfortably for people on board; a vessel with a small metacentric height will roll sluggishly and may face a greater danger ofcapsizing.
The portion of thetriangular trade pattern of the late 16th through the early 19th centuries in the Atlantic Ocean in which slaves were transported from Africa to theAmericas. In the terminology of theslave trade itself, theMiddle Passage linked theFirst Passage (the delivery from Europe of the trade goods to be used to purchase slaves) with theFinal Passage (the shipment of the products of slave plantations – sugar, tobacco, cotton – to the markets of Europe).
middles
The middlebrails on themainsail, higher than the lowers, and lower than the mains.[2]
midship house
Asuperstructure built over themidships section of thehull, often housing thebridge and officers quarters, as well as passenger quarters aboardcargo liners. A common feature oftankers,cargo liners, andcargo ships up until the mid-20th century, when ship design moved away from the use of midship houses.
1. During the 17th century, a naval rating for an experienced seaman.
2. From the 18th century, a naval commissioned officer candidate.
3. From the 1790s, an apprentice naval officer.
4. From the 19th century, an officer cadet at a naval academy.
5. In contemporary British usage, anon-commissioned officer below the rank oflieutenant. Usually regarded as being "in training" to some degree. Also known as "Snotty". It is "the lowest form of rank in the Royal Navy" where he has authority over and responsibility for more junior ranks, yet, at the same time, relying on their experience and learning his trade from them.
6. In contemporary American usage, a cadet of either sex at theUnited States Merchant Marine Academy or theUnited States Naval Academy, or under contract and having sworn the Oath of Office in the Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) program. When plural (midshipmen), the term refers to the student body of either academy, and more formally as "the Regiment of Midshipmen" for the Merchant Marine Academy and "the Brigade of Midshipmen" for the Naval Academy, or for the NROTC unit members usually organized into battalions.
midshipman's hitch
An alternative to theBlackwall hitch, preferred if the rope is greasy. Made by first forming a Blackwall hitch and then taking the underneath part and placing it over the bill of the hook.[6]
A self-contained explosive device intended to damage or sink surface ships or submarines, designed to be placed in water and left to wait until they are triggered by the approach of, proximity of, or contact with a surface ship or submarines.
A vessel designed or equipped to detect and destroy individual mines. It differs from aminesweeper, which is designed or equipped to clear areas of water of mines without necessarily detecting them first.
A vessel designed or equipped to clear areas of water of mines without necessarily detecting them first. It differs from aminehunter, which is designed or equipped to detect and destroy individual mines.
misstay
To be "in irons" (i.e. to lose forward momentum) when changingtack.
mizzen
1. Themizzenmast is (a) on a vessel with three masts, the after-most mast, (b) on a vessel with two masts, the after-most mast if it is shorter than the other mast, (c) on a vessel with four masts, the third mast, counting from forward[9] (d) in the special situation of Britishluggers with two masts, the after-most mast.[10]
2. The mizzen sail is the lowest sail set on the mizzen mast. This is normally a fore-and-aft sail. Where a lower square sail is set on the mizzen, it is called acro'jack to differentiate from a sail such as aspanker[11]
3. A mizzen staysail is a fore-and-aft sail set in front of the mizzen mast[12]
A massive structure, usually of stone or concrete, used as apier, breakwater, or causeway between places separated by water. May have a wooden structure built upon it and resemble a wooden pier orwharf, but a mole differs from a pier, quay, or wharf in that water cannot flow freely underneath it.
molgogger
1. A type of roller fairlead, also known as a cage roller, with vertical and horizontal rollers, mounted on thebulwark orgunwale and used to constrain and guide a fishing net or towing cable for a net orminesweepingparavane.[13][14]
2. A removable or folding vertical bar or hook fitted to the bulwarks of a tug on either side to prevent the towline moving too far forward, which can endanger stability. Sometimes fitted with a roller. Also called a Norman pin.[15]
1. A turretedironcladwarship of the second half of the 19th century characterized by lowfreeboard, shallowdraft, poorseaworthiness, and heavy guns, intended for riverine and coastal operations.
2. In occasional 19th-century usage, any turreted warship.
3. A shallow-draft armored shore bombardment vessel of the first half of the 20th century, designed to provide fire support to ground troops, often mounting heavy guns.
5. (river monitor) A monitor specifically designed for riverine operations, used during the 19th and 20th centuries and more recently than other types of monitor. River monitors generally are smaller and lighter than other monitors.
monkey bridge
A high platform above thewheelhouse offering better visibility to the operator while maneuvering.
A ball woven out ofline used to provide heft to heave the line to another location. The monkey fist and other heaving-line knots were sometimes weighted with lead (easily available in the form of foil used e.g. to seal tea chests from dampness) althoughClifford W. Ashley notes that there was a "definite sporting limit" to the weight thus added.
A vessel that leads, serves, or carries smaller vessels, in the latter case either releasing them and then proceeding independently or also recovering them after they have completed a mission or operation. A mother ship sometimes contrasts with atender, which often (but not necessarily) is a vessel that supports or cares for larger vessels.
A type of motor-poweredsailing vessel, typically ayacht, that can derive power from itssails or engine, independently of each other and often with both at the same time (motorsailing)
motorsailing
Proceeding under the power ofsails and engines at the same time. In ayacht this is usually to windward and may be found more comfortable than using just sails or engines on their own.[16]
A template of the shape of thehull in transverse section. Several moulds are used to form a temporary framework around which a hull is built.
moulded
(of a timber in a wooden hull) The identifier of a measurement of atimber in a wooden hull, used, together withsided, instead of width and thickness which could be ambiguous – length, the third dimension is not ambiguous. Moulded identifies the measure across the surface of an individual timber where one side of that surface is shaped to fit the overall hull shape, as determined by the moulds. Therefore this is the dimension across the vertical sides of a keel, the athwartships face of a frame, or the fore and aft face of stem or stern post.[17]
moulded beam
moulded breadth
The breadth of the hull lines at the widest point, normally at midships and measured inside the hull planking or plating. Used in some systems of tonnage measurement.[18]
moulded depth
The distance between the horizontal plane of the top of the keel and the top of the main deck beams at the edge of the hull. Compare withfreeboard depth.[4]
moulded dimensions
Dimensions of a ship shown by thelines plan, generally excluding planking thickness and shell thickness.[18]
moulded draft
moulded draught
Draught measured relative to the base line.[18] Compare withkeel draught.
mould loft
Where thelines of the ship are drawn out full-size and the templates for thetimbers are made.
mousing
Several turns of lightline around the mouth of a hook, to prevent unhooking accidents.[2]
Acargo ship that has fittings to carry standard shipping containers and retractabletweendecks that can be moved out of the way so that the ship can carry bulk cargo.
An exercise conducted by thecrew of a ship prior to embarking on a voyage. Passengers are required to participate in the drill so that they can be instructed how to evacuate safely in the event of an emergency on board the ship.
muster station
A specific location on a vessel planned as a gathering place during an emergency or a muster drill. If a person is believed missing, all passengers must report to their muster station for a head count.
A ship whose name also is used to refer to her entireclass of ships. Usually but not always the first ship of her class to be completed and enter service, in which case the termname ship can be used as a synonym forlead ship.
A body of water protected from the weather by virtue of its being mostly surrounded by land, and deep enough to provideanchorage for the vessels using it.
A map of a sea or ocean area and adjacent coastal regions, intended specifically for navigation at sea. Nautical charts usemap projections designed for easy use with hand instruments, such as theMercator projection, and indicate depths, hazards,landmarks,aids to navigation such asbuoys, andashore facilities of interest tomariners. Nautical charts are generally originally published by government agencies such as the U.S.National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and are now provided in both print form and digital for use in chartplotters.
A unit of length corresponding to approximately oneminute of arc oflatitude along anymeridian arc. By international agreement, it is equivalent to exactly 1,852 metres (6,076 ft; 1.151 miles).
naval programme
The British system of authorizing naval construction by an annualbill inParliament.
naval infantry
1. Sailors subordinated to anavy trained and equipped to operateashore temporarily as an organized infantry force, but at other times responsible for the normal duties of sailors aboard ship.
2. A specialized, permanent force of troops subordinated to a navy and responsible for infantry operations ashore. Although more specialized than sailors trained to operate temporarily as naval infantry and bearing similarities to amarine force ormarine corps, such permanent naval infantry forces often lack the full capabilities of a marine force. Naval infantry forces also usually differ from marine forces in being subordinated directly to a navy rather than to a separate branch of naval service such as a marine corps.
All activities related to determining, plotting, and tracking the position andcourse of a ship in order to keep track of its position relative to land while at sea. Navigation charts have been used since ancient times, and remain in use as back-ups to modern satellite-basedpositioning systems. Numerous map projections including the common Mercator projection were developed specifically to make navigation at sea simple to perform with straight-edges and compasses.
Rules of the road that provide guidance on how to avoid collision and also used to assign blame when a collision does occur.
nay
A reply in the negative, synonymous with "no". The opposite of "aye".
net cutter
1. (Fisheries patrol), alsotrawlwire cutter: A device employed by theIcelandic Coast Guard during the "Cod Wars" to cut thetrawling wires of foreign fishing trawlers working within Iceland's claimed exclusive fisheries zones.
2. (Submarine): A device, sometimes powered by explosives, mounted on thebow of asubmarine to cut through anti-submarine netting.
3. (Torpedo): A scissors-like or pistol-powered device on the nose of atorpedo intended to assist the torpedo in breaking throughtorpedo nets.
A term used for a ship trading between England and ports east of theCape of Good Hope for the English Company Trading to the East Indies, a new company chartered in 1697 to compete with the "old"East India Company. The term fell into disuse when the two companies merged in 1707.[19]
night boat
(United States) A type ofsteamboat that provided sleeping quarters for passengers on overnight voyages, as opposed to aday boat that had no need of such facilities.
nipper
A short rope used to bind acable to the "messenger" (a movingline propelled by thecapstan) so that the cable is dragged along, too (used where the cable is too large to be wrapped around the capstan itself). During the raising of ananchor, the nippers were attached and detached from the (endless) messenger by the ship's boys. Hence the term for small boys: "nippers".
A type of navigationalbuoy, often cone-shaped, but if not, always triangular in silhouette, colored green inIALA region A or red inIALA region B (the Americas, Japan, Korea, and the Philippines). In channel marking its use is opposite that of a "can buoy".
Any material, often tarredhemp fibres picked from old untwisted ropes, used forcaulking gaps or seams between the planks ofhulls.
oar
A pole, usually of wood, with a blade at one end and a handle at the other, which is pivoted on a fulcrum on the side of a boat to provide propulsion by pushing the blade through the water.[20]
oar crutch
A metal (or sometimes plastic) fitting that acts as the fulcrum point of anoar. It usually takes the form of a U-shape, with a pin underneath the bottom of the "U". The pin rotates in a socket in the boat'sgunwale, and the oar rests in the "U".[21] See alsorowlock.[16]
The part of a naval vessel containing the residential quarters andwardroom for commissioned officers. Officer's country is off-limits to enlisted personnel unless they are there on official business.
Said of a vessel making a voyage without being carried aboard another vessel; e.g. "theyacht crossed the ocean on her ownbottom", or in the plural, "yachts rarely cross the ocean on their own bottoms".
on station
A ship's destination, typically an area to be patrolled or guarded.
on the beach
1. ARoyal Navy term that means "retired from the Service."[22]
1. Aseaman in the British Royal Navy in the 18th century who had between one and two years of experience at sea. Later, a formal rank in the Royal Navy for the lowest grade of seaman, now obsolete.
2. The second-lowest rank in the United States Navy from 1797 to 1917, betweenlandsman andseaman. Renamed "seaman second class" in 1917.
2. Situated within a vessel but positioned away (or farther away, when contrasted with another item) from hercenterline.
3. Farther from thehull of a ship; e.g. "the larger boat was tied up alongside the ship outboard of the smaller boat".
4. Farther from thepier or shore; e.g. "the tanker and cargo ship were tied up at the pier alongside one another with the tanker outboard of the cargo ship".
A motor mounted externally on thetransom of a small boat. Outboard motors are often mounted in a way that makes them easily movable, such that the boat may be steered by rotating the whole motor with respect to the boat's bearing, instead of or in addition to using arudder.
1. Generally, any structure projecting from the side of a vessel.
2. Any contraposing floatrigging beyond the side of a vessel to improve the vessel's stability.
3. A thin, long, solid hull used to stabilize the inherently unstable main hull of anoutrigger canoe or asailboat.
4. A variety of structures projecting from akeelboat by which therunning rigging may be attached outboard of thehull.
5. A pole or series of poles projecting from afishing vessel that allow the vessel to trawl with more fishing lines in the water without the lines tangling and allowing lures and bait to simulate a school of fish.
6. A triangular frame on arowboat orgalley that holds therowlock away from thesaxboard orgunwale to optimize leverage for the rowers. Also called arigger.
outward bound
To leave the safety ofport, heading for the open ocean.
Adult sailors were flogged on the back or shoulders while tied to a grating, but boys were beaten instead on the posterior (often bared), with a cane orcat o' nine tails, while bending, often tied down, over the barrel of a gun, known askissing the gunner's daughter.
overbear
To sail downwind directly at another ship, stealing the wind from its sails.
overboard
Off or outside a vessel. If something or someone falls, jumps, or is thrown off of a vessel into the water, the object or person is said to have gone overboard. Seeman overboard.
overfalls
Dangerously steep and breaking seas due to opposing currents and wind in a shallow area, or strong currents over a shallow rocky bottom.
overhead
The ceiling of any enclosed space below decks in a vessel, essentially the bottom of the deck above.
overhaul
Hauling thebuntline ropes over the sails to prevent them fromchafing.
A large and distinctive type offoremast installed aboardImperial Japanese Navybattleships andbattlecruisers during modernization and reconstruction of the ships in the 1930s. A pagoda mast was created by strengthening a ship's existingtripod foremast and adding platforms to it forsearchlights,lookouts, shelters, and other structures, giving the mast the appearance of apagoda temple.
painter
A rope attached to thebow of a vessel, used to make the vesselfast to adock or a larger vessel, including when towedastern.[24]
The pulsation in and out of thebow andstern plating as the ship alternately rises and plunges deep into the water.
paravane
1. (weapon) A device stabilized by vanes that functions as an underwater glider and is usually streamed from the bow of a vessel and towed alongside, intended to cut the mooring of submerged mines or otherwise destroy them.[25]
2. (water kite) A towed underwater object with hydrofoils, of use in commercial and sport fishing, water sports, marine exploration, and military operations, sometimes equipped with sensors and also of use in exerting a sideward holding force on a vessel. Also called awater kite.
parbuckle
A method of lifting a roughly cylindrical object such as aspar. One end of a rope is made fast above the object, a loop of rope is lowered and passed around the object, which can be raised by hauling on the free end of rope.
A movable loop or collar, used to fasten ayard orgaff to its respectivemast. A parrel still allows the spar to be raised or lowered and swivel around the mast. It is sometimes made of wire or rope and fitted with beads to reduce friction.
part brass rags
Fall out with a friend. From the days when cleaning materials were shared between sailors.
A type of very light and shallow Spanish sailing vessel of the 15th through 18th centuries with twomasts, resembling a cross between abrig and aschooner. Originally a type ofwarship, but later in use as a trading vessel.
pawls
Small bars used to stop the barrel of awinch orcapstan moving backward under an increased load or if the turning power was reduced. In early capstans, the pawls had to be manually moved in and out of the notches in which they worked. Later capstans had automatic pawls that dropped into notches as the barrel turned. In breaking out ananchor, a crew would "heave and pawl" if the bow was rising and falling with the waves, so giving a varying load on thecable.[26]
pay off
1. To let a vessel's head fall off from the wind (toleeward).[2]
2. During theAge of Sail, the practice of paying a crew its wages for the voyage when a vessel completed her voyage, at which point the crew was said to bepaid off.
3. In British and Commonwealth usage, todecommission a warship, e.g. "The old destroyerpaid off after returning to port at the end of her final cruise."
paying
Filling a seam (withcaulking or pitch), lubricating the runningrigging; paying withslush, protecting from the weather by covering with slush. See alsothe devil to pay.
paymaster
The officer responsible for all money matters in Royal Navy ships including the paying and provisioning of the crew, all stores, tools, and spare parts. See alsopurser.
pea coat
Heavy topcoat originally made from pilot cloth.[27] Officers and chief petty officers wear a variation with gold buttons called areefer or a longer model called abridge coat.
peace cruiser
U.S. Navy term of the early 20th century for obsoletecruisers andgunboats used in policing and diplomatic roles.[28]
peak
1. The upperaftermost corner of afore-and-aftsail; used in many combinations, such aspeak-halyards,peak-brails, etc.[2]
2. The narrow part of a vessel's bow, or thehold within it.
A hook with a hinge in the curve of the hook, normally held closed by a metal ring that keeps the two hinged parts together. Can be instantly released by knocking the ring along the hook so that it frees one of the hinged parts which swings open and releases whatever the hook is holding. Often seen on opening sections of guard rails and life-raft lashings, but also used on more heavily loaded components.[16][29]
pendant
1. A length of wire or rope secured at one end to amast orspar and having ablock or other fitting at the lower end.
A raised structure, typically supported by widely spread piles or pillars, used industrially for loading and unloading commercial ships, recreationally for walking and housing attractions at a seaside resort, or as a structure for use by boatless fishermen. The lighter structure of a pier contrasts with the more solid foundations of aquay or the closely spaced piles of awharf. In North America, the term "pier" used alone connotes either a pier used (or formerly used) by commercial shipping or one used for fishing, while in Europe the term used alone connotes a recreational pier at a seaside resort.
pier-head jump
When a sailor is drafted to awarship at the last minute, just before she sails.
A highly specialized form ofrope ladder, typically used to embark and disembarkpilots over the side of a ship. Sometimes confused withJacob's ladders, but the design and construction of pilot ladders is governed tightly by international regulation and includes spreaders – elongated versions of the standard machined step – rather than the type of steps generally found on Jacob's ladders.
The pin or bolt on which a ship'srudder pivots. The pintle rests in thegudgeon.
pipe (bos'n's)
Alsobosun's call.
A whistle used byboatswains (bosuns or bos'ns) to issue commands. Consisting of a metal tube that directs the breath over an aperture on the top of a hollow ball to produce high-pitched notes. The pitch of the notes can be changed by partly covering the aperture with the finger of the hand in which the pipe is held. The shape of the instrument is similar to that of a smoking pipe.
pipe down
A signal on thebosun's pipe to signal the end of the day, requiring lights (and smoking pipes) to be extinguished and silence from the crew.
piping the side
Asalute on thebosun's pipe(s) performed in the company of the deck watch on thestarboard side of thequarterdeck or at the head of thegangway, to welcome or bid farewell to the ship'scaptain, senior officers, and honoured visitors.
An act of robbery or criminal violence at sea by the occupants of one vessel against the occupants of another vessel (and therefore excluding such acts committed by the crew or passengers of a vessel against others aboard the same vessel). Piracy is also distinguished fromprivateering, which is authorized by national authorities and therefore a legitimate form of war-like activity by non-state actors.
A vessel's motion, rotating about thebeam/transverse axis, causing thefore andaft ends to rise and fall repetitively.
pitchpole
To capsize a boat stern over bow, rather than by rolling over.
pivotting
To turn a sailingbarge in shallow water by dropping theleeboard so it drags in the mud, then putting thehelmhard over. The maneuver is often used to enter congested harbours.
A special marking, positionedamidships, that indicates thedraft of the vessel and the legal limit to which the vessel may be loaded for specific water types and temperatures.
British term for the German Navy'sDeutschland-classcruisers, which entered service in the 1930s. The ships hadbattleship-like armament and armor but were of cruiser size and faster than battleships of the time and were intended to serve as commerce raiders. Classified by the German Navy asPanzerschiffe ("armored ships").
point
A unit ofbearing equal to the angle made by1⁄32 of a circle, i.e. 11.25 degrees. A turn of 32 points is a complete turn through 360 degrees.
The course of a sailing vessel in relation to the direction of the wind, divided into six points:in irons (pointed directly into the wind),close hauled (sailing as close into the direction of the wind as possible),close reach (between close hauled and beam reach),beam reach (perpendicular to the wind),broad reach (wind behind the vessel at an angle), andrunning downwind,running before the wind, or simplyrunning (wind directly behind the vessel).
A 17th-century sailing vessel commonly seen in the Mediterranean, similar to axebec with two or threemasts; two-masted polaccas were known asbrig-polaccas and three-masted polaccas asship-polaccas orpolacca-settees. Polacca-settees had alateen sail on theforemast, a European-stylesquare rig on themainmast, and agaff or lateen on themizzenmast.
A highdeck on theaft superstructure of a ship. The deck forms a roof over the "poop cabin" in the aft of the ship.[31]
pooped
1. (of a ship or boat) to have a wave break over the stern when travelling with a following sea.[32] This contingency, that can cause significant damage to the ship, is also referred to as "pooping".[33]
1. (facility): A maritime facility on a sea coast, in an estuary, or on a river with loading areas at which a vessel can bring aboard or discharge cargo or passengers.
2. A place along a coast or riverbank where a vessel can take shelter, often including loading and unloading facilities for vessels.
3. A city or town associated with such a facility or sheltering area.
4. (direction): The left side of a ship or vessel when facing forward (formerlylarboard). Denoted with a red light at night.[2]
5. Toward the left-hand side of the ship when facing forward (formerly "tolarboard").
6. (rowing): Asweeprower who rows with oneoar on one side of a boat and primarily on the port (left) side of the boat.
Theport listed in a vessel's registration documents and lettered on herstern. Often used incorrectly as a synonym forhome port, meaning the port at which the vessel is based, but it may differ from the port of registry.
port tack
When sailing with the wind coming from theport side of the vessel. Vessels on port tack must give way to those onstarboard tack.
porthole
Also simplyport.
An opening in a ship's side, especially a round one for admitting light and air, fitted with thick glass and, often, a hinged metal cover, used as a window.
portolan
An obsolete form of nautical chart used prior to the development of lines of latitude and longitude that indicated distances and bearing lines between ports.
The British term used from the second half of the 18th century until 1817 for asixth rateship-rigged sailing warship armed with 20 to 26 guns, smaller than afrigate but large enough to require apost-captain as her commanding officer.
A small room/closet area in thehull of the ship used for storinggunpowder in barrels, or "kegs", usually located centrally so as to have easy access to the grated loading area. Sometimes may be an enclosed closet with a door, so it can be locked and only the captain would have the key, similar to how rum is stored.
The license given to a ship to enter port on assurance from her captain that she is free from contagious disease. A ship can signal a request for pratique by flying a square solid-yellow flag. The clearance granted is commonly referred to asfree pratique.
A term used retrospectively after 1906 for a wide variety of steambattleships built between the 1880s and c. 1905 designed with only a few large guns for long-range fire, relying on an intermediate secondary battery used at shorter ranges for most of their offensive power, and havingtriple-expansion steam engines. They were rendered obsolete by the revolutionarydreadnought battleships, which began to appear in 1906 and differed from predreadnoughts in havingsteam turbine propulsion and an "all-big-gun" armament layout in which the ship's primary gun power resided in a primary battery of its largest guns intended for use at long range, with other gun armament limited to small weapons intended for close-range defense againsttorpedo boats and other small warships.
Formed body of personnel from a ship of theRoyal Navy (either a ship seeking personnel for its own crew or from a "press tender" seeking men for a number of ships) that would identify and force ("press") men, usually merchant sailors, into service on naval ships, usually against their will.
preventer
Alsogybe preventer andjibe preventer.
A sail controlline originating at some point on theboom leading to a fixed point on the boat'sdeck orrail (usually acleat orpad eye) used to prevent or moderate the effects of an accidentaljibe.
In British usage, a Principal Naval Transport Officer is a shore-basedflag officer orcaptain responsible for sea transport duties, and for assisting the Senior Naval Officer in the preparation of naval orders and conductingdisembarkations.
A vessel used as a prison, often to hold convicts awaiting transportation to penal colonies; particularly common in the British Empire in the 18th and 19th centuries.
In British usage, a commissionedwarship in active service that is not being used as theflagship of aflag officer. The term does not imply in any way that the ship is privately owned.
(of an oar, as used at sea) using an oar for propulsion of a boat where each person (of several) uses one oar. This contrasts withrowing (at sea), where each person uses two oars, one each side of the boat. Seerow for a full explanation of the complexities of the strict definitions.[35]: 135
A flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water and typically propelled by pushing against the riverbed with a pole. In this way it differs from agondola, which is propelled by anoar.
The person who buys, stores, and sells all stores on board ships, including victuals, rum, and tobacco. Originally a private merchant, latterly a warrant officer.
1. In merchant marine usage, the seaman responsible for steering a ship. In naval usage, additional duties in running the ship's routine are included.[36]
2. US Navy enlisted rating (QM) who, in addition to the above duties, assists with the navigation of the ship.[37][36]
The standing orders governing the BritishRoyal Navy issued in the name of the currentMonarch.
quay
1. A stone or concrete structure on navigable water used for loading and unloading vessels, generally synonymous with awharf, although the solid foundations of a quay contrast with the closely spaced piles of a wharf. When "quay" and "wharf" are used as synonyms, the term "quay" is more common in everyday speech in the United Kingdom, manyCommonwealth countries, and Ireland, while "wharf" is more commonly used in the United States.
An electronic system designed to transmit radio signals and receive reflected images of those signals from a "target" in order to determine the bearing and distance to the target. The term is an acronym for "radio detection and ranging".
radar reflector
A special fixture fitted to a vessel or incorporated into the design of certainaids to navigation to enhance their ability to reflectradar energy. In general, these fixtures materially improve the visibility for use by vessels with radar.
A flat structure used for support or transportation over water, lacking ahull and kept afloat by buoyant materials or structures such as wood, balsa, barrels, drums, inflated air chambers such as pontoons, or extruded polystyrene blocks.
1. A weapon consisting of an underwater prolongation of thebow of a vessel to form an armored beak, intended to be driven into thehull of an enemy vessel in order to puncture the hull and disable or sink that vessel.
2. An armoredwarship of the second half of the 19th century designed to use such a weapon as her primary means of attack.
3. To intentionally collide with another vessel with the intention of damaging or sinking her.
4. To accidentally collide bow-first with another vessel.
range
1. To lay out a rope or chain on deck in a zig-zag or (for rope) a figure‐eight pattern (as opposed to in acoil) so that it can run freely. The zig-zag pattern may be described asflakes.[16][36]
2. The difference between the heights of the high and lowtides – a figure that will vary from place to place and day to day.[36]
3. The distance from an observer to a target, such as in gunnery.[36]
1. In British usage, a junior enlisted member of a country'snavy; i.e., any member of the navy who is not an officer orwarrant officer.
2. In contemporaryU.S. Navy andU.S. Coast Guard usage, rating is theoccupational specialty of an enlisted member of the service,rate denotes enlisted pay grade, andrank generally applies to commissioned officer pay grades.
Sailing across the wind; i.e. bearing anywhere between about 60° and 160° relative to the direction from which the wind is blowing. Reaching can be further subdivided into "close reaching" (about 60° to 80°), "beam reaching" (about 90°), and "broad reaching" (about 120° to 160°). Comparebeating andrunning.
reaching sail
Asail specifically designed for tighter reaching legs. Reaching sails are often used in racing with a true wind angle of 35 to 95 degrees. They are generally used before the wind angle movesaft enough to permitspinnakers to be flown.
A government official whose duty is to give owners ofshipwrecks the opportunity to retrieve their property and ensure that law-abiding finders of wrecks receive an appropriate reward.
receiving hulk
Alsoreceiving ship.
Ahulk used in harbor to house newly recruited sailors before they are assigned to a crew.
Red Duster
A traditional nickname for theRed Ensign, thecivil ensign flown by civilian vessels of the United Kingdom.
A British flag flown as anensign by certain British ships. Since 1854, it has been flown by Britishmerchant ships (except for those authorized to fly theBlue Ensign) as the United Kingdom'scivil ensign. Prior to 1864, ships of theRoyal Navy's Red Squadron also flew it, but its naval use ended with the reorganisation of the Royal Navy in 1864.
A phrase used as a mnemonic to remember that the navigational standard for a vessel entering ("returning to") a port in the Americas (excludingGreenland), Japan, South Korea, and the Philippines is for her to steer so that red-markednavigational aids lie tostarboard (to the "right") of an observer facingforward on the vessel, while green-marked aids must lie toport (i.e. to the "left"). This contrasts with the rest of the world, where the standard is the opposite, i.e. green markers must lie to starboard and red ones to port.
red-to-red
A passage of two vessels moving in the opposite direction on theirport sides, so called because the red navigation light on one of the vessels faces the red light on the other vessel.
1. (noun) Rock or coral that is either partially submerged or fully submerged but shallow enough that a vessel with a sufficientdraft may touch or runaground.
2. (verb) To temporarily reduce the area of asail exposed to the wind, usually to guard against adverse effects of strong wind or to slow the vessel.[2]
reef-points
Lengths of rope attached to asail and used to tie up the part of a sail that is taken out of use whenreefed. In older systems, such assquare orgaff rigs, the reef points take some of the load on the sail and distribute it to theboltrope; with slab reefing, the reef-points just keep the sail fabric controlled in a tidy manner. Reef points may either be sewn to each side of the sail or passed through eyelets.[32][16][40]
reef-bands
Long pieces of rough canvas sewn across the sails to give them additional strength.
A series of boat races, usually of sailboats or rowboats but occasionally of powered boats.
regular ship
A term used by the BritishEast India Company from the 17th to the 19th centuries for merchant ships that made "regular voyages" for the company between England (later theUnited Kingdom) and ports east of theCape of Good Hope, a trade over which the company held a strict monopoly. The companychartered most of its ships; "regular ships" were those under long-term charter, and the company kept their operations under tight control. A set of "regular ships" set off for Asian ports during each sailing season (September through April), and returned up to two years later. The status and role of "regular ships" differed from that of ships the company referred to aschartered ships,country ships,extra ships, andlicensed ships.[19]
Abearing relative to the direction in which the vessel is pointing or traveling; the angle between the vessel's forward direction and an object, as measured clockwise from thebow. See alsoabsolute bearing.
A collection of naval vessels fully equipped for service but partially or fully decommissioned because they are not currently needed. In the modern United States, a reserve fleet is sometimes informally called aghost fleet. During theAge of Sail and well into the 19th century, ships in a reserve fleet were said to bein ordinary.
a type of jam of the rope on a winch drum: the heavily loaded part of the rope unintentionally rises over the successiveturns on the winch, so stopping them from moving.[42]
The process of restoring acapsized vessel to upright condition.
righting couple
righting moment
The force that tends to restore a ship to upright equilibrium once aheel has altered the relationship between the vessel'scenter of buoyancy andcenter of gravity.
An area of persistent strong westerly winds found in theSouthern Hemisphere, generally between the latitudes of40 and50 degrees south. During theAge of Sail, ships took advantage of the Roaring Forties to speed their trips, andyacht sailors still do today.
Any unusually large wave for a givensea state; formally, a wave whose height is more than twice thesignificant wave height of that sea state (i.e. the mean of the largest third of waves in a wave record).
1. The side-to-side motion of a vessel as it rotates about thefore-aft (longitudinal) axis.Listing is a lasting, stable tilt, orheel, along this longitudinal axis.
2. Another name for the longitudinal axis itself (e.g. the "roll axis").
roller
rolling swell
Swell that has increased in height due to influence of the bottom in shallow water, but before it is high enough to break.[36]
1. A period, traditionally on Wednesday afternoons, when a tailor boarded a sailing warship while the vessel was in port; thecrew was excused from most duties and had light duty mending uniforms and hammocks and darning socks. When the ship was at sea, the crew similarly was excused from most duties on Wednesday afternoons to engage in mending chores. Wednesday afternoons, like Sundays, thus were a more social time when crewmen rested from normal duties, similar to a Sunday, and, because the crew used rope yarn for mending, Wednesday afternoon became known asrope yarn Sunday.
2. After uniforms began to require less care, and through the mid-20th century, a period on Wednesday afternoons when naval crew members were excused from their regular duties to run personal errands.
3. Since the mid-20th century, any period of free time when a naval crew is given earlyliberty or otherwise excused from its normally scheduled duties.
1. A metal plate (with a hole in it) or washer placed over the protruding end of a nail driven through two timber components. The nail is deformed over the rove, so as to hold the timber components tightly together. Used particularly inclinker construction.[46]: 212
2. (more precisely, as used at sea) to propel a boat with oars, where each rower handles two oars, one on each side of the boat. This contrasts with the inland waters definition. When, at sea, a person is working just one oar, this is termedpulling[35]: 135
2. (more precisely, as used in inland waters) to propel a boat with oars, where each rower uses just one oar. On inland waters, one person using two oars, one on each side of the boat, is termedsculling[35]: 135
1. The cutout in thewashstrake of a boat into which an oar is placed, so providing a fulcrum when the oar is in use.[47]
2. A common term for anoar crutch, the u-shaped metal fitting, with a pin underneath that fits in a socket in thegunwale of a boat to provide the fulcrum for anoar.[16] See alsothole pin.
royal
1. On large sailing ships, amast right above thetopgallant mast.
A steering device that is placedaft and pivoted about a (usually vertical) axis to generate ayawing moment from the hydrodynamic forces that act on the rudder blade when it is angled to the flow of water over it. There are several types of rudder, which generally divide into outboard or inboard. An outboard rudder is hung (hinged) on thestern of the vessel. An inboard rudder has astock which passes through a gland in thehull, with the structure of the hull continuing towards the stern above the rudder. A spade rudder is hinged solely on the stock and has no lower bearing to help take the loads. Other rudder types may be hinged on an extension of thekeel or on askeg. Rudders may be balanced, by having some of the blade extend in front of the stock. On simple watercraft, the rudder may be controlled by atiller—essentially, a stick or pole attached to the top of the rudder to allow it to be turned by a helmsman. In larger vessels, the rudder is often linked to asteering wheel via cables, pushrods, or hydraulics.
The structural part of arudder that transmits the torque created by thetiller or steering gear to the rudder blade. It may consist of a steel tube which passes through bearings in the hull above the rudder, or with a stern-hung rudder, is the structure carrying all or some of the pintles or gudgeons on which the rudder pivots.
ruffle
A serrated iron ring attached to the barrel of theanchorwinch and to which thepawl is applied to prevent backruns of theanchor chain.[2]
1. A place or room for thestowage of cargo in a vessel.
2. The act of stowing cargo aboard a vessel.
3. To arrange (cargo, goods, etc.) in thehold of a vessel; to move or rearrange such goods; the pulling and moving about of packages incident to close stowage aboard a vessel.
4. To search a vessel for smuggled goods, e.g. "The customs officers rummaged the ship."
rummage sale
A sale of damaged cargo (from Frencharrimage).
run
1. Thestern of the underwater body of a ship from where it begins to curve upward and inward.
Sailing more than about 160° away from the direction from which the wind is blowing (i.e. moving in the same or nearly the same direction as the wind). If moving directly away from the wind, it is called adead run. Comparereaching andbeating.
running (adjective)
A piece of the ship's rigging that is regularly moved in normal operation, as opposed to permanently or semi-permanently fixed in position. For instance a running bowsprit may only be put into its working position when a sail is set from it.
running backstays
Abackstay that can be released and moved out of the way so that it does not interfere withsails orspars on theleeward side. Ontacking, the new windward running backstay must be set up promptly to support the mast.[2]
running gear
1. The propellers, shafts, struts, and related parts of amotorboat.
A condition in which thehull of a vessel deflects downward so the ends of thekeel are higher than the middle. The opposite ofhogging. Sagging can occur when the trough of a wave isamidships or during loading or unloading of a vessel and can damage her or even break her in half.
1. A piece of fabric attached to avessel and arranged such that it causes the wind to drive the vessel along. Sails are typically attached to the vessel and manipulated by sailors via a combination ofmast,spars, andropes.
2. The power harnessed by a sail or sails to propel a vessel.
3. To use sail power to propel a vessel.
4. A trip in a boat or ship, especially a sailboat or sailing ship.
5. In American usage, a tower-like structure on the dorsal (topside) surface ofsubmarines constructed since the mid-20th century. A submarine's sail is similar in appearance to a fabric sail or fin, and is referred to as afin in British and Commonwealth usage. It also superficially resembles theconning tower of submarines built before the mid-20th century, but differs from a conning tower in that a submarine conning tower contained instruments and controls for the periscopes to direct the submarine and launchtorpedo attacks, while a submarine sail (or fin) does not perform these functions.
sail drive
A non-steerable drive leg fitted through the bottom of a sailboat carrying a propeller. Compareazimuth thruster andsterndrive.
A method of freeing a vesselgrounded on mud, in which the crew forms a line and runs back and forthathwartships to cause her to rock back and forth, breaking the mud's suction and freeing her with little or no damage to thehull. When this is required, the crew is given the order "Sally ship!"
saloon
A social lounge on a passenger ship.
saltie
Great Lakes term for a vessel that sails the oceans.
salty dog
Slang for asailor, especially for aseaman in the navy.
A relatively flat-bottomed Chinese wooden boat from 3.5 to 4.5 metres (11 to 15 ft) long, generally used in coastal areas or rivers and as traditional fishing boats. Some have a small shelter, and they may be used as a permanent habitation on inland waters. It is unusual for sampans to sail far from land as they are not designed to survive rough weather.
sampson post
A strong vertical post used to fasten the anchor cable or mooring warps, for towing another vessel, or to support a ship'swindlass, theheel of a ship'sbowsprit, the base of a cargo derrick or any other heavy load. In a smaller vessel, is usually fastened to the keel at its lower end.[32][16]
sandsucker
Abarge that collects sand from the bottom of lakes.
SB
S.B.
Prefix for "sailing barge", used before a ship's name.
scandalize
To reduce the area and efficiency of asail by expedient means (slacking the peak and tricing up thetack) without properlyreefing, thus slowing boat speed. Also used in the past as a sign of mourning.
A type of sailing vessel characterized by the use offore-and-aft sails on two or moremasts with the forward mast being no taller than the rear masts. First used by the Dutch in the 16th or 17th century. Atopsail schooner has a square topsail (and may also have a topgallant) on the foremast.
A type ofbarge either converted from aschooner or purpose-built as a barge with a schoonerrig, primarily in use from the 1860s to the 1940s, initially on theGreat Lakes and later in salt-water environments as well. A schooner barge required a smaller crew than a schooner and needed to be towed, but under favorable conditions could hoistsails to reduce fuel consumption by the vessel towing her.[49][50]
1. A method of preparing ananchor for tripping by attaching ananchor cable to the crown and fixing to the ring by a lightseizing (also known asbecue). The seizing can be broken if the anchor becomes fouled.
2. A type of clinkerdinghy, characteristically beamy and slow.
3. An inland racing boat with nokeel, a large sail plan, and a planing hull.
1. (v.) In sport or recreational rowing, especially on inland water, to propel a boat by oars, where each of one or several persons uses two oars, one on each side of the boat. This contrasts with the maritime traditional working boat or naval usage, where this activity is calledrowing.[35]: 135
2. (v.) To propel a boat with a single oar resting in a notch at the stern, using a figure of eight motion of the blade of the oar, which is continuously immersed in the water
4. (n.) A boat propelled by sculling, generally for recreation or racing
scuppers
Originally a series of pipes fitted through a ship's side from inside the thicker deck waterway to the topside planking in order to drain water overboard, with larger quantities drained through freeing ports, which were openings in thebulwarks.
scute
Alsogaliote
A flat-bottomed boat with a simplesail used to transport wine in theAnjou region of France.
scuttle
1. A small opening, or lid thereof, in a ship'sdeck orhull.
2. To sink a vessel deliberately.
scuttlebutt
1. A barrel with a hole in it, used to hold water that sailors would drink from. By extension (in modern naval usage), a shipboard drinking fountain or water cooler.
A stabilizer deployed in the water forheaving to in heavy weather. It acts as a brake and keeps the hull in line with the wind and perpendicular to the waves. Often in the form of a large bag made of heavy canvas. See alsodrogue.
sea chest
A watertight box built against the hull of the ship communicating with the sea through a grillage, to which valves and piping are attached to allow water in for ballast, engine cooling, and firefighting purposes. Also, a wooden box used to store a sailor's effects.
The general condition of the free surface on a large body of water with respect to wind waves and swell at a certain location and moment, characterized by statistics, including thewave height,period, andpower spectrum. The sea state varies with time, as the wind conditions or swell conditions change.
The testing phase of a boat, ship, or submarine, usually the final step in her construction, conducted to measure a vessel's performance and general seaworthiness before her owners take delivery of her.
seaboat
1. Aship's boat kept ready for immediate use at sea, and used, for example, for retrieving a man overboard, or taking a boarding party to another vessel. Usually rigged with patent disengaging gear that allows both falls to be released simultaneously and quickly, so enabling the boat to be launched from a ship with way on.[53]
2. A term used for any vessel when assessing her physical behavior at sea. A vessel that performs well in challenging weather or sea conditions such as heavy seas isa good seaboat, while one which does not isa bad seaboat.
Avalve in thehull of a vessel used to allow seawater into or out of the vessel. Seacocks are used to admit seawater for purposes such as cooling an engine, feeding a saltwater faucet, orscuttling a vessel, or to drain a sink or toilet into the sea. Onwarships, seacocks may be used to floodammunition magazines with seawater to prevent them from exploding during a fire.
The ability of a watercraft to remainseaworthy in the conditions she encounters while underway. A vessel with a good seakeeping ability is very seaworthy even in rough weather.
sea-kindly
(of a boat or ship) Having a comfortable motion in rough seas[54]
A licensed member of the deck department of amerchant ship, third – or, on someocean liners, fourth – in command; a watchkeeping officer, customarily the ship'snavigator. Other duties vary, but the second mate is often the medical officer and in charge of maintaining distress-signaling equipment. On oil tankers, the second mate usually assists the chief mate with tank-cleaning operations.
see you on the one
AlsoCUOTO.
Used principally by pilots and river tug and barge deck and officer crew as a friendly farewell (similar to the phrase "catch you later") or more properly used in vessel to vessel VHF (or when needed ship's whistle) communication, along with its companion phrase "see you on the two" to indicate which side a head-to-head vessel crossing is going to occur. The correct response to the challenge is to repeat it back to the apposing vessel in agreement, and if not in agreement to ask for an alternative arrangement. The "on the one" indicates a single whistle sound signal, or port to port crossing, whilst "on the two" is a dual (two) whistle sound signal, or starboard to starboard crossing. In the US, a "one whistle" or port to port crossing is the normal and preferred crossing side.
seekers
London term for sailingbarges that sought cargo, carrying cargo for other merchants at a fee, rather than for the owner.[2]
Amerchant ship that can unload herself with no assistance from harbor facilities isself-sustaining, while a ship that needs harbor facilities to unload isnon-self-sustaining. Self-sustaining ships are more expensive to build, maintain, and operate than non-self-sustaining ships, but have the advantage of being able to operate in less-developed ports that lack infrastructure.
self-unloader
Great Lakes slang term for a vessel with a conveyor or some other method of unloading the cargo without shoreside equipment.
An advanced type ofpredreadnoughtbattleship of the very early 20th century with an "all-big-gun" armament of mixed calibers. A semi-dreadnought differed from a conventional predreadnought, which had only a few large guns for long-range fire and relied on an intermediate secondary battery used at shorter ranges for most of her offensive power, but also differed from adreadnought battleship, which dispensed with an intermediate secondary battery in favor of an all-big-gun main battery of the same caliber for use at long range. A semi-dreadnought had greater firepower at longer ranges than a conventional predreadnought, but lacked the long-range firepower of a dreadnought.
sennet
Cord formed by plaiting rope-yarn by hand. There are many types of plait, which may be flat, round, or square in section, and many uses.[56][36]
sennet whip
A summary punitive implement.
serve
Cover a rope or splice by wrapping with thin line to protect it.[2] Compare withwhipping
set
The direction toward which the current flows.
settle
(of a ship or boat): sink lower in the water, often prior to sinking altogether.
A navigational instrument used to measure a ship'slatitude.
shackle
U-shaped iron, with a screw pin at the open end used for securingstays tosails, allowing easy removal.[2]
shaft
1. Apropeller shaft. The termshaft can be used instead of "propeller" to describe the number of propellers a ship has, e.g.,The ship has two shafts orThe ship's engines drive three shafts.
A cruise performed before a ship enters service or after major changes such as a crew change, repair, or overhaul during which the performance of the ship and her crew are tested under working conditions.
shakes
Pieces of barrels or casks broken down to save space. They are worth very little, leading to the phrase "no great shakes".
A rope attached to theclew and used to control the setting of asail in relation to the direction of the wind. The sheet is often passed through atackle before being attach to fixed points on the deck, or in the case of abarge, to a traveller on the main horse.[2]
sheet anchor
Historically, the heaviestanchor aboard a sailing ship, to be used only in case of emergency, and locatedamidships. In more general usage, the term has come to mean a person or thing that is very reliable in times of emergency.[59] For example, during thefirst inauguration of Thomas Jefferson, he advocated, "the preservation of the General [Federal] Government in its whole constitutional vigor, as the sheet anchor of our peace at home and safety abroad."[60]
An extremely narrow, and often disproportionately long, rowing boat outfitted with longoars,outriggers to hold theoarlocks away from the boat, and sliding seats, specifically designed for racing or exercise.
shelter deck
An upperdeck having no overhead protection from the weather itself, but sheltering the deck below it.
shift colors
1. Changing the flag and pennant display when a moored vessel becomes underway, and vice versa. A highly coordinated display that ships take pride in; the desired effect is that of one set of flags vanishing while another set flashes out at precisely the same time.
2. Slang for changing out of one's Navy uniform into civilian clothes to go ashore. (The US Navy's newsletter for retired personnel is nicknamedShift Colors for this reason.)[62]
Sighting the positions of the Sun and Moon using asextant, using anautical almanac to determine the location and phase of the Moon, and calculating the relative effect of thetides on the navigation of the ship.[63][64]
2. More generally, any medium or larger seagoing vessel. Smaller vessels or those used in sheltered waters are generally called boats. Exceptions include submarines which are always referred to as boats.[66]
3. To send (an item or cargo) via waterborne transport, or in the derived meaning, by any means of transport (such as rail).[67]
A type of sailingwarship constructed from the 1600s through the mid-1800s to serve as part of theline of battle; one of the largest and most powerful warships of the era.
Striking the ship's bell is the traditional method of marking time and regulating the crew's watches. Each bell (from one to eight) represents a 30-minute period since the beginning of a four-hourwatch. For example, in the classical system, "Three bells in the morning watch" represents 90 minutes since the beginning of the morning watch, or 5:30 AM. "Eight bells" indicates the end of a watch.
The number of persons in a ship'screw, including officers.
ship's husband
A legal term for an agent based on land, who has authority to make repairs and attend to the management, equipment, and general management of a ship in the home port.[68][69]
All aspects of maintenance, cleaning, and general upkeep of the hull, rigging, and equipment of a ship. It may also be used to refer to aspects of maintenance which are not specifically covered by the technical departments.[70][71]
2. The body of ships belonging to one country, port, or industry.
shipshape
Meticulously neat and tidy. A sailor is expected to keep his or her quartersshipshape, with all items arranged neatly and securely, both to save space aboard ship and because of the danger posed by loose objects if the ship encounters turbulent seas.
A facility whereships or boats are built and repaired. Routinely used as a synonym fordockyard, although dockyard is sometimes associated more closely with a facility used for maintenance and basing activities, while shipyard sometimes is associated more closely with a facility used in construction.
An especially shallowdraught on a vessel, making the vessel capable of sailing in unusually shallow water.
shore leave
Free time given to officers and crew of a naval vessel when they are off duty and allowed to disembark and spend time on land. See alsoliberty.
short stay
The relative slackness of ananchor chain; "short stay" means the chain is somewhat slack, and neither vertical nor fully extended.
shorten
1. To take in the slack of (a rope).
2. To reduce (sail) by taking it in, e.g. "shorten sail".
shot across the bow
A shot fired close to and in front of a moving vessel to warn her to stop, often for boarding.
show your true colors
To display the correct flag ("colors") for your ship's sovereign allegiance after using a false or misleading flag, or flying no flag at all, to approach an unsuspecting enemy ship.
One of an even-numbered group of seamen posted in two rows on thequarterdeck when a visiting dignitary boards or leaves the ship, historically to help (or even hoist) him aboard.
sided
(of atimber in a wooden hull) The identifier of a measurement of a timber in a wooden hull, used, together withmoulded, instead of width and thickness which could be ambiguous – length, the third dimension is not ambiguous. Sided identifies the measure across the surface of an individual timber which is at right angles to the moulded direction. Therefore this is the dimension across the top of a keel, the fore and aft face of a frame, or the athwartships face of stem or stern post.[72]
(of the arrangement of oars on a boat) having only one oarsman seated on eachthwart, operating one oar on one side of the boat, with the oars alternating between port and starboard along the length of the boat. This contrasts withdouble-banked, where two oarsmen are seated on each thwart, each of whom operates one oar on their side of the boat. A third arrangement is to have one rower on each thwart working two oars, one on each side of the boat.[35]: 135
single up
to reduce the number of mooring lines to a minimum immediately prior to getting under way. In a small vessel this would usually be a reduction to a mooring line at just the bow and the stern. In a larger vessel this may be a reduction to headrope, sternrope and two springs.[73]
Aship of the same class as, and therefore virtually identical in design and appearance to, another ship. Sister ships share an identical or nearly identicalhull andsuperstructure layout, similar displacement, and roughly comparable features and equipment. Often, sister ships become more differentiated during their service lives as their equipment (and, in the case of military ships, their armament) are separately altered.
A downward or sternward projection from thekeel in front of therudder. Protects the rudder from damage, and inbilge keelers may provide one "leg" of a tripod on which the boat stands when the tide is out.
skeleton crew
A minimal crew, usually employed during an emergency or when a vessel is inactive, generally consisting of the minimum number of personnel required to maintain or operate the vessel.
A small boat, traditionally a coastal or river craft, for leisure or fishing, with a single person or small crew. Sailing skiffs have developed into high-performance competitive classes.
A type of sailboat used as a traditional fishing boat on theChesapeake Bay foroyster dredging. It arose around the end of the 19th century as the successor to thebugeye as the chief oystering boat on the bay.
A squaresail set above theroyals, typically only carried by largebarques and ships, such as thePrimrose Hill (1885),Oweenee (1819), andMushkosa (1819).[34][74]
skyscraper
A small triangular sail above theskysail. Used in light winds on a few ships.[citation needed]
A large cargo ship specially converted for the transportation ofslaves in theslave trade. Also known as aslaver orGuineaman, the latter term deriving from theGuinea coast ofWest Africa.
1. To pass a rope around something in preparation for attaching a hoisting or loweringtackle to it.
2. A band of rope or iron for securing ayard to amast; chiefly used in the plural,slings.
slip
1. To let go a rope at a precise moment, such as when releasing the last attachment to a buoy, when getting under way.[76]
2. To slip ananchor: to let go the anchor cable, abandoning the anchor so as to get under way in an emergency, rather than spend time hauling in the cable to raise the anchor in the normal way. The released anchor cable is usually buoyed to aid recovery later.[76]
3. The difference between the theoretical distance traveled per revolution of a vessel's propeller and the actual advance of the vessel.
4. In marine engineering, the motion of the center of resistance of the float of a paddle wheel or the blade of anoar through the water horizontally.
5. In marine engineering, the difference between a vessel's actual speed and the speed it would have if the propelling instrument acted upon a solid.
6. In marine engineering, the velocity of the backward current of water produced by the propeller relative to still water.
7. In marine insurance, a memorandum of the particulars of a risk for which a policy is to be executed, usually bearing the broker's name and initialled by the underwriters.
slip rope
A mooring rope that is intended to be the last to be released when getting under way and is arranged so that it can be released from on-board. An example of this would be a rope that is led from the ship (or boat), through a ring on a mooring buoy, and then back to the ship.[77]
A ramp on the shore by which ships or boats can be moved to and from the water. Slipways are used for building and repairing ships and boats. They are also used for launching and retrieving small boats on trailers towed by automobiles and flying boats on their undercarriage.
In modern usage (fromcirca 1850s), a single-masted fore and aft sailing rig with one headsail set on the forestay, and a mainsailabaft the mast. The sloop rig is very common in modern leisure sailing vessels. In older usage, a sloop may have more than one headsail, but with the jib (the outer headsail) also set on a stay. This differentiates from acutter of the same era, where the jib would be set flying and a running bowsprit was used. Any bowsprit that might be fitted on a sloop was part of the standing rigging and remained in place at all times.[78]
1. In the 18th and 19th centuries, a small sailingwarship carrying 18 or fewer guns with a single continuous gundeck.
2. In the 18th and 19th centuries, any sailing warship bearing fewer than 20 guns.
3. In the 19th-century US Navy, the term used for the type of sailing warship known in other navies as acorvette.
4. In the early and mid-20th century, a small oceangoing warship not intended for fleet deployments, and used instead for convoy escort, gunboat duties, etc.
slop chest
A ship's store of merchandise, such as clothing, tobacco, etc., maintained aboard merchant ships for sale to thecrew.
slush
Greasy substance obtained by boiling or scraping the fat from empty salted meat storage barrels, or the floating fat residue after boiling the crew's meal. In theRoyal Navy, it was a perquisite of the ship's cook, who could sell it or exchange it (usually for alcohol) with other members of the crew. Used for greasing parts of the running rigging of the ship and therefore valuable to themaster andbosun.
A traditional fishing boat used off the coast of England and the Atlantic coast of America for most of the 19th century and in small numbers up to the mid-20th century. Originally acutter-rigged sailing boat, after about 1865 lengthened and given aketch rig. Some had atopsail on themizzen mast, others abowsprit carrying ajib.
Restricted flame source lighted only during authorized smoking hours.[27]
snag
1. Snag, alsodeadhead: A tree or tree branch fixed in the bottom of a navigable body of water and partially submerged or rising nearly to the surface that can pierce and sink vessels. Snags were a particularly severe hazard in the 19th and early 20th centuries; to besnagged is to suffer damage from or to be sunk by such a hazard.
2. An underwater obstruction on which equipment trailed from a vessel, such as fishing lines and nets, becomes caught, sometimes resulting in loss of the equipment.
A river boat resembling abarge with asuperstructure for crew accommodations, equipped withdeck-mounted cranes and hoists for removingsnags and other obstructions from rivers and other shallow waterways.
snatch block
Ablock with one cheek that is hinged, so that the bight of a rope can be inserted in the block (as opposed to threading the end of the rope into an ordinary block).[79]
snipe
1. Member of a ship's engineering department.
2. Mythical object of a "snipe hunt" for inexperienced crewmembers.
snotter
A short rope, spliced together at the ends and covered with hide, that is seized to themast to hold the lower end of asprit.[80]
1. Anacronym for "sound navigation and ranging", a method of using sound pulses to detect, range, and sometimes image underwater targets and obstacles or the bed of the sea. See alsoecho sounding andASDIC.
2. The equipment used to conduct such searches, ranging, and imaging.
A wooden (in later years also iron or steel) pole used to support various pieces ofrigging andsails. The big five-mastedfull-riggedtall shipPreussen (German spelling:Preußen) had crossed 30 steel yards, but only one wooden spar – the littlegaff of itsspanker sail.
1. A largesail flown in front of the vessel while heading downwind.[85]
2. Aheadsail setwindward when running before the wind. The bargeman's spinnaker is histopmaststaysail, tacked to the mast, and sheeted round the weather crosstree.[2]
To join lines (ropes, cables, etc.) by unravelling their ends and intertwining them to form a continuous line; to form an eye or a knot by splicing.[80]
An order given aboard naval vessels to issue thecrew with a drink, traditionallygrog. The phrase "splice the mainbrace" is used idiomatically meaning to go ashore onliberty, intending to go out for an evening of drinking.
Informal term for wooden boats of various types the United States armed forces used during World War II. Some of the boats were civilian vessels brought into service for the war, while others were built during the war specifically for wartime service. Some were transferred toAllied countries.
A projection from the side of a vessel for protection, stability, or the mounting of equipment such as armaments orlifeboats. A sponson that extends a hull dimension at or below thewaterline serves to increase flotation or add lift when underway. In salvage of a damaged or disabled vessel, a sponson may be a flotation tank attached to provide stability or buoyancy.
spoke
Spoke (to) another ship, as in "Spoke a brig from Rio" inNarrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket byEdgar Allan Poe.
sponsor
The person, traditionally a woman, who christens a ship at its launching ceremony.
Aspar on a sailboat used to deflect theshrouds to allow them to better support themast.[2]
spring
A mooring warp that goes from thebow to a position on thequayside level with thestern (backspring) or led forward from the stern to a point level with the bow (forespring). A spring may be used in conjunction with the engine to swing the bow or stern away from a quayside to enable safe departure.[87]
springs
Big tides caused by the alignment of the Moon and Sun.[75]
sprit
Aspar that supports aspritsail. It is attached to themast near thedeck and extends diagonally up to the peak of the sail. It is steadied byvangs.[2]
1. In general, any significant group ofwarships considered too small to be afleet, but otherwise not strictly defined by size. In some navies, the termflotilla may be used instead of or in addition tosquadron.
2. Such a group of warships assigned to and named after a particular ocean, sea, or geographical region, commanded by anadmiral who may be the naval commander-in-chief in that theatre, e.g. theAsiatic Squadron, theNorth Atlantic Squadron, etc.; generally synonymous with similar naval formations known asstations.
3. During theAge of Sail, a temporary subdivision of a fleet.
4. A temporary detachment of ships from a fleet.
5. Especially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, a permanent battle formation of a fleet, equipped and trained to operate as a tactical unit under the overall command of the fleet or when detached from the fleet.
6. Especially in modern usage, an administrative naval command responsible for the manning, training, supply, and maintenance of a group of ships or submarines but not for directing their operations at sea.
square
To place at right angles with themast orkeel and parallel to the horizon, e.g. "to square the yards".
square meal
A sufficient quantity of food. Meals on board ship were served to the crew on a square wooden plate in harbor or at sea in good weather. Food in theRoyal Navy was invariably better or at least in greater quantity than that available to the average landsman. However, while square wooden plates were indeed used on board ships, there is no established link between them and this particular term. The OED gives the earliest reference from the US in the mid-19th century.
A generic type ofsail andrigging arrangement in which the primary driving sails are carried onyards that are perpendicular, or "square", to thekeel of the vessel and to themasts. A ship mainly so rigged is said to besquare-rigged.[55]
Yards held rigidly perpendicular to theirmasts and parallel to thedeck. This was rarely the best trim of the yards for efficiency but made a pretty sight for inspections and in harbor. The term is applied to situations and to people figuratively to mean that all difficulties have been resolved or that the person is performing well and is mentally and physically prepared.
The phenomenon by which a vessel moving quickly through shallow water creates an area of lowered pressure under itskeel that reduces the ship's buoyancy, particularly at the bow. The reduced buoyancy causes the ship to "squat" lower in the water than would ordinarily be expected, and thus its effectivedraught is increased.
An abbreviation, used as a prefix to ship names, for "Steam Ship" or—for the purist—"Screw Steamer" (ie, a steamship withscrew propulsion). Compare with "PS", which stands for "Paddle Steamer".
A logo or other type of livery on a ship'sstack indicating which private entity, such as a shipping line, or government agency owns or operates her. Generally, all the ships belonging to the fleet of a single company or agency will have the same stack marking.
stackie
Abarge designed to take a large deck cargo, usually of hay or straw needed to feed working horses.[2]
A vertical post near the edge of adeck that supports life-lines; atimber fitted in between the frame heads on a wooden hull or a bracket on a steel vessel, approx one meter high, to support thebulwark plank or plating and therail.
stand
(of a ship or its captain) To steer, sail, or steam, usually used in conjunction with a specified direction or destination, e.g. "The ship stood out of the harbor" or "The ship stood toward the east" or "The ship stood toward the missing vessel's last known position".
stand-on (vessel)
A vesseldirected to keep her course and speed where two vessels are approaching one another so as to involve a risk of collision.
standing part
The section of a rope at acleat or ablock that is under tension, as opposed to the loose end.[2]
The right side of a ship or boat; towards the right-hand side of a vessel facing forward (toward thebow).[2] Denoted with a green light at night. Derived from the old steering oar or "steerboard", which preceded the invention of therudder.
starboard tack
When sailing with the wind coming from thestarboard side of the vessel. Vessels on starboard tack generally have right-of-way over vessels onport tack.
starter
A rope used as a punitive device. Seeteazer andtogey.
stateroom
1. Originally a first-class passenger cabin. In modern usage, any passenger cabin may be described as a stateroom.[89]
2. A superior cabin for a vessel's officer.
station
1. In chiefly 19th- and early 20th-century usage, a naval formation under a commander-in-chief who controls all naval operations, and sometimes all naval shore facilities, within a specified geographic area (e.g. theChina Station, theEast Indies Station, etc.); sometimes synonymous withsquadron.
2. InNewfoundland, aharbour or cove with a foreshore suitable for a facility to support nearby fishing.
3. Naval station: a naval base (anaval air station is a base for naval aircraft).
4. Coaling station: a facility that supplies ships with coal.
station ship
A ship assigned to a particular station, such as a port or a geographic area, usually to support naval vessels and operations. A station ship may patrol the local area, or provide personnel to other ships, or provide fuel or services such as repairs.
1. A strongrope supporting amast and leading from the head of one mast down to some other mast or other part of the vessel; anyrigging running fore (forestay) and aft (backstay) from a mast to thehull. The stays support a mast's weight forward and aft, while theshrouds support its weight from side to side.[90]
2. To incline forward, aft, or to one side by means of stays, e.g. to "stay a mast".
3. Totack; put on the other tack, e.g. to "stay ship".
4. To change; tack; go about; be in stays, as a ship.
Asail whoseluff is attached to astay. If set on the most forward (or only)mast, a staysail is aheadsail. Where more than one headsail is set, the staysail is generally the one closest to the mast.[16]: headsail
A long, flat board oroar that went from thestern to well underwater, used to steer vessels before the invention of therudder. Traditionally on thestarboard side of a ship (the "steering board" side).
The rear part of a ship, technically defined as the area built up over thesternpost, extending upwards from the counter rail to thetaffrail. Contrastbow.
A propeller drive system similar to the lower part of anoutboard motor extending below the hull of a larger power boat or yacht, but driven by an engine mounted within the hull. Unlike a fixed propeller (but like an outboard), the boat may be steered by twisting the drive. See alsoinboard motor.
The upright structural member (orpost) at thestern of a (usually wooden) ship or boat, to which are attached thetransoms and the rearmost corner part of the stern. It rests on ("fays to") the ship'skeel, and may be vertical or tilted ("raked") slightly aft.
A member of a vessel's crew involved in commissary duties or in personal services to passengers or other crew members.
stiff
Astiff vessel is one with ametacentric height high enough to make her more stable and less prone to rolling than other vessels. A stiff vessel contrasts with atender vessel.
A knot tied in the end of arope, usually to stop it passing through a hole; most commonly afigure-eight knot.
stoppers
A short rope to check a cable in a fixed position.Anchor stoppers hold theanchor when catted,bitt stoppers anddeck stoppers are used to retain the cable when at anchor,shroud stoppers contain a damaged shroud, andforetack andsheet stoppers secure thetacks until they are belayed.[91]
1. During theAge of Sail and immediately afterwards, a captured ship used to stow supplies and other goods for naval purposes.
2. Since the mid-20th century, a type of naval ship that provides supplies, such as frozen, chilled, and dry provisions, and propulsion and aviation fuel towarships at sea for an extended period. In some navies, synonymous withreplenishment oiler,fleet replenisher, orfleet tanker.
stove
Alsostove in.
(past tense ofstave, often applied as present tense) To smash inward; to force a hole or break in, as in a cask, door, ship'shull, or other (wooden) barrier.
stow
To store or put away, e.g. personal effects, tackle, or cargo.
A trespasser on a ship; a person aboard a ship without permission and/or without payment, who usually boards undetected, remains hidden aboard, and jumps ship just before makingport or reaching a port's dock; sometimes found aboard and imprisoned in thebrig until the ship makes port and the prisoner can be transferred to the custody of police or military.
straggler
In a convoy, a ship that is unable to maintain speed and falls behind.
A continuous line of planking on a woodenhull going from bow to stern. In a small boat, this is usually a single plank, in a larger vessel a strake is several planks joined end to end. In a steel hull the same term can be applied to a continuous line of steel plates all fastened at the same level.[92]
stretcher
A foot rest attached to a boat for a rower to use, taking some of the load created by the force applied to the oar. In competitive sport rowing, the feet may be attached to the stretcher. In working boats, it may be a simple adjustable wooden bar.[35]: 135-139
3. To remove a naval vessel's name from a country's naval register (after which the vessel is consideredstricken).
4. An attack by a naval combat asset.
5. To undergo training (as a "striker") to qualify for an enlistedrating.
strike the colors
To surrender the vessel to an enemy, from the custom during theAge of Sail of lowering the vessel'sensign to indicate that she is surrendering.
stringer
a longitudinal structural element of ahull. In a wooden hull this is usually atimber fastened to the inner faces of theframes, going the length of the hull. In a fibreglass hull, stringers are usually moulded in fibreglass against the inner skin of the hull over a lightweight timber or other core material, so having a "top hat" section – this moulded structure runs in a generally fore and aft direction.[93][16]
British and Commonwealth acronym forShip Taken Up From Trade, which refers to a civilian ship requisitioned for naval or other government service.
stumpy
1. Aspritsailbarge without atopmast. Normal form before 1850, the stumpies sprit was longer than those used intopsail barges, as themainsail was cut with a higher peak.[2][94]
2. A tops'l barge underway without her topsails set.[2]
STW
An abbreviation of "speed through (the) water"; the speed of the vessel relative to the surrounding water (and as shown by aLog). Used in navigation.
1. Generally, a watercraft capable of independent operations underwater, able to renew its own power and breathing air. A submarine differs from asubmersible, which has more limited underwater capabilities. By naval tradition, any submarine is referred to informally as a "boat" regardless of its size.
2. Most commonly, a large, crewed vessel capable of independent underwater operations.
3. Historically and colloquially, a broad category of vessels capable of submerged operations, including large, crewed submarines but also medium-sized and smaller vessels such asmidget submarines andwet subs and vessels technically considered submersibles because they require external support, such asremotely operated vehicles andautonomous underwater vehicles.
A small watercraft capable of operating underwater but which requires the support of a surface vessel, a surface platform, a shore team, or a larger undersea vessel such as asubmarine. A submersible contrasts with a submarine in that a submarine is capable of fully autonomous operations, including generation of its own power and breathing air. However, colloquially, the term "submarine" often indiscriminately refers to any vessel capable of underwater operations, including those that technically are submersibles.
A person aboard a vessel who is employed by the cargo owner. Duties include selling merchandise in ports, as well as buying and receiving goods for the return voyage.
superfiring
Superfiring armament is a naval military building technique in which two (or more) turrets are located in a line, one behind the other, with the second turret located above ("super") the one in front so that the second turret can fire over the first.
The parts of a ship or boat, including a sailboat, fishing boat, passenger ship, or submarine, that project above her maindeck. This does not usually include itsmasts or any armament turrets.
Anoar-driven boat designed to enter the ocean from a beach in heavy surf or large waves. Surfboats often play a lifesaving or rescue role when rescuers need to reach victims of a mishap directly from a beach.
surge
1. A vessel's transient motion in afore andaft direction.
2. To let a small amount ofrope on a bollard or winch drum pay out – a controlled slackening of a rope under tension.[16]
An abbreviation of "Sailing Vessel", used before the ship's name.
swallow
The gap in the shell of a block through which a line passes over a sheave.[36]
swatchway
A twisting channel navigable by shallow vessels at high water, generally found betweensandbanks (e.g. in theThames Estuary) or between a sandbank and the shore.
sway
1. A vessel's lateral motion from side to side.
2. (verb) To hoist, e.g. "sway up my dunnage".[95]
sweep
1. A longoar used to row, steer, or maneuver an unpoweredlighter or sailing vessel when there is no wind.[36]
2. Rowing: Arower who rows with a singleoar and primarily on only one side of a boat.
3. (verb) To search for an underwater object using a towed submerged line or device which will snag on the target.[36]
4. (verb) To clear a body of water of dangers such snaval mines and obstructions, e.g.,minesweeping.
swept
Cleared of dangers such asnaval mines and obstructions, e.g., "Theswept channel was safe for vessels to use."
swig
swigging
To take up the last bit of slack on a line such as ahalyard, anchor line, or dockline by taking a single turn round acleat and alternately heaving on the rope above and below the cleat while keeping the tension on the tail.
A technique to finally tension ahalyard, by pulling alternatively on the tail from thecleat and at right angles on the taut standing line.[2]
swinging the compass
Measuring the accuracy in a ship's magneticcompass so its readings can be adjusted, often accomplished by turning the ship and taking bearings on reference points. Essentially synonymous with "swinging the ship".
swinging the lamp
Tellingsea stories. Refers to lamps slung from thedeckhead that swing while at sea, and often used to describe a storyteller who is exaggerating.
swinging the lead
1. Measuring the depth of water beneath a ship using alead-weightedsounding line. Regarded as a relatively easy job.
2. Feigning illness, etc., in order to avoid a difficult job.
swinging the ship
Turning the ship and steadying her on various headings while taking bearings on reference points to measure the accuracy of her magnetic compass. Essentially synonymous with "swinging the compass".
A large bracket attached firmly to thedeck, to which the foot of themast is fixed. It has two sides or cheeks and a bolt forming the pivot around which the mast is raised and lowered.[2]
1. A sailing manoeuvre by which a sailing vessel whose desired course is into the wind (i.e. in the opposite direction from which the wind is blowing) turns itsbow toward and through the wind, such that the direction from which the wind fills the sails changes from one side of the boat to the other, thereby allowing progress in the desired direction. A series of tacking moves, effectively "zig-zagging" back and forth across the wind, is calledbeating, and allows the vessel to sail directly upwind, which would otherwise be impossible.[96]
Overhead diagram of atacking manoeuvre. The red arrow is the direction of the wind; note how the side of the sail that is filled by the wind changes as the vessel turns its bow.
tacking duels
In sailboat racing, on an upwind leg of the race course, the complex manoeuvres of lead and overtaking boats to vie for the aerodynamic advantage of clear air. This results from the ongoing strategy of the lead boat's effort to keep the following boat(s) in the blanket of disturbed bad air he is creating.
tackle
A pair ofblocks through which is rove arope to provide an advantageouspurchase. Used for lifting heavy loads and to raise andtrimsails.[2]
The perpendicular distance between a ship's course when thehelm is puthard over and her course when she has turned through 180 degrees; the ratio of the tactical diameter divided by the ship'slength between perpendiculars gives a dimensionless parameter that can be used to compare the manoeuvrability of ships.
A kind of metallic shafting (a rod of metal) to hold the propeller and connected to the power engine. When the tailshaft is moved, the propeller may also be moved for propulsion.
taken aback
An inattentivehelmsman might allow the dangerous situation to arise where the wind is blowing into the sails "backwards", causing a sudden (and possibly dangerous) shift in the position of the sails.
taking the wind out of his sails
To sail in a way that steals the wind from another ship. Compareoverbear.
taking on water
Alsotaking water andtaking in water.
Said of a vessel, to fill with water slowly, either because of a leak or because of waves washing across the deck. The term can be used to describe water entering the vessel by waves washing over herbow orstern, e.g., "The freightertook water over her bow," or "The motorboattook water over her stern." A vessel which continues totake on water eventually will sink.
A vessel, typically an obsolete or capturedwarship, used for naval gunnery practice or for weapons testing. The term includes both ships intended to be sunk and ships intended to survive and see repeated use as targets.
A small,lateen-rigged, single-masted sailing ship used in the Mediterranean for fishing and coastal trade from the 16th century to the late 19th century.
Any temporary naval organisation composed of particular ships, aircraft, submarines, military land forces, or shore service units, assigned to fulfill certain missions. Seemingly drawn originally fromRoyal Navy heritage, the emphasis is placed on the individual commander of the unit, and references to "CTF" are common for "Commander Task Force".
tattle tale
Light cord attached to a mooring line at two points a few inches apart with a slack section in between (resembling an inchworm) to indicate when the line is stretching from the ship's rising with the tide. Obviously only used when moored to a fixed dock or pier and only on watches with a flood tide.
A light piece of string, yarn, rope, or plastic (often magnetic audio tape) attached to astay or ashroud to indicate the local wind direction. They may also be attached to the surface and/or theleech of asail to indicate the state of the air flow over the surface of the sail. They are referenced when optimizing thetrim of the sails to achieve the best boat speed in the prevailing wind conditions. Seedogvane.
1. n. A type of navalauxiliary ship designed to provide advanced basing services in undeveloped harbors to seaplanes, flying boats, torpedo boats, destroyers, or submarines.
2. n. Alsoship's tender, a vessel used to provide transportation services for people and supplies to and from shore for a larger vessel.
3. n. A vessel used to maintain navigational aids, such as buoys and lighthouses.
4. adj. Atender vessel is one with ametacentric height low enough to make her less stable and more prone to rolling than other vessels. A tender vessel contrasts with astiff vessel.
stiff
Astiff vessel is one with ametacentric height high enough to make it more stable and less prone to rolling than other vessels. A stiff vessel contrasts with atender vessel.
TEV
T.E.V.
A prefix for "turbo-electric vessel", used before a ship's name.
A licensed member of the deck department of amerchant ship, typically fourth, or on some ocean liners fifth, in command; a watchkeeping officer, customarily also the ship's safety officer, responsible for the ship's firefighting equipment,lifeboats, and other emergency systems. Other duties of the third mate vary depending on the type of ship, its crewing, and other factors.
A vertical wooden peg or pin inserted through thegunwale to form a fulcrum foroars when rowing. Often used in pairs to create a gap in which the oar is placed, but used singly if the oar has a thickened section pierced with a hole which takes the thole pin. See alsorowlock.
On a three-masted ship, having thesheets of the three lower courses loose will result in the ship meandering aimlessly downwind. Also used to describe a sailor who has drunk strong spirits beyond his capacity.
A name given, on particular occasions, to thesteersman of a ship. From the Frenchtimonnier.
tin can
United States Navy slang for adestroyer; often shortened tocan.
tinclad
A lightly armored steam-powered rivergunboat used by the United States Navy during theAmerican Civil War (1861–1865). Also called alight draft. A tinclad had thin iron armor, or in some cases thick wooden bulwarks rather than armor, sufficient to protect her machinery spaces and pilothouse against rifle fire but not against artillery fire. A tinclad contrasted with anironclad, which had armor thick enough for protection against artillery fire.
tingle
A thin temporary patch.
toe-rail
A low strip running around the edge of thedeck like a lowbulwark. It may be shortened or have gaps in it to allow water to flow off the deck.
toe the line
Alsotoe the mark.
At parade, sailors and soldiers were required to stand in line, their toes in line with a seam of thedeck.
A block of wood inserted into the barrel of a gun on a 19th-centurywarship to keep out the sea spray; also used for covers for the ends of the barrels of the guns on more modern ships, the larger of which are often adorned with the ship's crest or other decoration.
1. Any of various measures of the size or cargo-carrying capacity of a ship in terms of weight or volume.
2. Builder's Old Measurement, alsotons burden: a volumetric measurement of cubic capacity used to calculate the cargo capacity of a ship, used in England and later the United Kingdom, from approximately 1650 to 1849 and in the United States from 1789 to 1864. It estimated the tonnage of a vessel based on her length and maximumbeam. The British formula yielded a slightly higher value than the U.S. formula.
3. Deadweight tonnage: the total weight a vessel can carry, exclusive of the mass of the vessel itself.
4. Displacement tonnage: the total weight of a vessel.
The platform at the upper end of each (lower)mast of asquare-rigged ship, typically one-fourth to one-third of the way up the mast. The main purpose of a top is to anchor theshrouds of thetopmast that extend above it. See alsofighting top.[100]
1. A collective term for themasts,yards,sails, andrigging of a sailing ship, or for similarly insubstantial structures above the upperdeck of any ship.[101]
2. Unnecessaryspars and rigging kept aloft on a vessel's masts.
A line that is part of therigging on a sailing boat; it applies upward force on aspar orboom. The most common topping lift on a modern sailing boat is attached to the boom.[100]
The secondsail (counting from the bottom) up amast. These may be eithersquare sails orfore-and-aft ones, in which case they often "fill in" between the mast and thegaff of the sail below.
topsail schooner
Aschooner that sets a squaretopsail on yards carried on the foremast. Atopgallant may also be set above the topsail. (The term does not apply to a schooner setting just fore and aft topsails above gaff sails.) There is some terminological variation, both over time and place, on what square sails a vessel may set and still be termed a schooner.[102][103][104]
1. Prior to about 1900, the term for a variety of explosive devices designed for use in water, includingmines,spar torpedoes, and, after the mid-19th century, "automotive", "automobile", "locomotive", or "fish" torpedoes (self-propelled weapons which fit the modern definition oftorpedo).
2. Since about 1900, a term used exclusively for a self-propelled weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with its target or in proximity to it.
A small, fast, cheap naval vessel of the latter part of the 19th century and first half of the 20th century designed to carrytorpedoes into combat, thus threatening much largerwarships. Replaced during the second half of the 20th century by thefast attack craft.
A heavy net a ship could deploy around herself using booms orspars while at anchor, moored, or otherwise stationary to protect herself fromtorpedo attack. A torpedo net hung at a distance from thehull sufficient to detonate a torpedo without significant damage to the ship. Torpedo nets first appeared in the late 1870s and were used through theWorld War I era, and they were used again duringWorld War II.
touch and go
1. The bottom of the ship touching the bottom, but notgrounding.
2. Stopping at adock orpier for a very short time without tying up, to let off or take on crew or goods.
3. The practice of aircraft onaircraft carriers touching the carrierdeck and taking off again without dropping hooks.
towing
The operation pulling a vessel or equipment through the water by means of lines.[36]
A decorative board at thebow of a vessel, sometimes bearing the vessel's name.
training ship
A ship used to train students assailors, especially a ship employed by a navy or coast guard to train future officers. The term refers both to ships used for training at sea and to old, immobilehulks used to house classrooms.
The shipping trade on the spot market in which the vessels involved do not have a fixed schedule or itinerary or publishedports of call. This contrasts with freight liner service, in which vessels make regular, scheduled runs between published ports.
British term for a room located in the interior of a ship containing computers and other specialised equipment needed to calculate the range and bearing of a target from information gathered by the ship's spotters and range finders. These were designated "plotting rooms" by the United States Navy.[105]
1. A lateral member fastened inside thesternpost, to which thehull and deckplanks are fitted.[2]
2. Theaft "wall" of thestern; often the part to which an outboard unit or the drive portion of asterndrive is attached.
3. A more or less flat surface across the stern of a vessel.Dinghies tend to have almost vertical transoms, whereasyachts' transoms may be raked forward or aft.
Transom stern
Astern which ends in a vertical "wall," ortransom, a flat area that extends from thewaterline or a point above the waterline up to the deck.
1. Small fittings that slide on a track, rod, or line. The most common use is for the inboard end of themainsheet.
2. A more esoteric form of traveller consists of "slight iron rings, encircling thebackstays, which are used for hoisting thetop-gallantyards, and confining them to the backstays".[100]
An iron ring that moves on the main horse on a sailing barge. It is fitted with an eye onto which is hooked the main sheet, of the loose-footedmainsail.[2]
A wooden peg, pin, or dowel used to fasten pieces of wood together, such as thehull,gunwales,thwarts, etc.[100]
trial trip
A (usually short) voyage for a new ship to test its capabilities and ensure that everything is functioning correctly. A new ship will usually have one or more trial trips before embarking on itsmaiden voyage.
A historical term for a pattern of trade among threeports or regions in which each port or region imports goods from one of the other two ports or regions in which there is no market for its exports, thus rectifying trade imbalances between the three ports or regions as well as allowing vessels to take the best advantage of prevailing winds and currents along the three trade routes. The best known example is the Atlantic triangular trade pattern of the late 16th through the early 19th centuries, in which vessels carried finished goods from northeastern North America or Europe to Africa, slaves from Africa to the Americas, and cash crops and raw materials from the Americas to either northeastern North America or Europe.
trice
To lift up something by means of arope running through a block set above it, to get it out of the way. Most commonly used in tricing up the tack of a loose-footed gaff sai to reduce sail area and (sometimes) to give better visibility to the helmsman.[16][106]
trick
A period of time spent at the wheel, e.g. "my trick's over".
trim
1. The relationship of a ship'shull to thewaterline.
2. Adjustments made tosails to maximize their efficiency.
A person responsible for ensuring that a vessel remains "in trim" (that the cargo and fuel are evenly balanced). An important task on a coal-fired vessel, as it could get "out of trim" as coal is consumed.
A type ofmast introduced aboardwarships in the first decade of the 20th century, consisting of three large cylindrical tubes or columns supporting a raised platform forlookouts and fire control equipment and later forradar antennas and receivers. In succeeding decades, tripod masts replaced the earlier pole masts andlattice masts. Tripod masts persisted in some navies until the 1960s, when plated-in structures began to replace them, and in other navies until the early 2000s, whenstealth designs began to move away from any type of open mast.
tripping line
A buoyed line attached to the crown of an anchor to facilitate breaking it out.
Any ship used to carry soldiers. Troopships are not specially designed for military operations and, unlikelanding ships, cannot land troops directly onto a shore; instead they unload troops at aharbor or onto smaller vessels for transportation to shore.
1. A circular disc or rectangle of wood or a wooden ball- or bun-shaped cap near or at the top of a wooden mast, usually with holes or sheaves in it through which signalhalyards can be passed. Trucks are also used on wooden flagpoles to keep them from splitting. Themain truck is located on themain mast, themizzen truck on themizzen mast, and so on.[96]
A counterstern that has been truncated to provide a kind oftransom. It may have windows, serving a largeaft stateroom. Popular on larger cruising yachts.
truss
The rope or iron used to keep the center of ayard to themast.
Ahull shape, when viewed in a transverse section, in which the widest part of the hull is someway belowdeck level.
tuna clipper
A fishing boat based on theUnited States West Coast and used for commercial tuna fishing. A typical tuna clipper is diesel-powered, has herdeckhouse forward and her bait tanks aft, and is outfitted with iron racks around herstem from which her crew uses heavybamboo poles to fish for tuna.
A rope passing behind or around an object such as a cleat, bollard or winch drum, usually with the purpose of controlling the rope.[107] See alsoriding turn
turn to (turn two)
A term meaning "get to work", often hand-signed by two fingers and a hand motion in turning fashion.
1. Originally (in the mid-to-late 19th century), a rotating, enclosed, armored, cylindrical box with guns that fired through gunports. Turret-equipped ships contrasted sharply with those equipped withbarbettes, which in the second half of the 19th century were open-topped armored rings over which rotating gun(s) mounted on a turntable could fire.
2. Since the late 19th century, an enclosed, armored, rotating gunhouse mounted above a barbette, with the gun(s) and their rotating turntable mounted in the barbette protected by the gunhouse; in 20th- and 21st-century usage, this generally is any armored, rotating gun installation on awarship.
turtleback deck
A weather deck that has a distinct convex rounded over shape, similar to the back of a turtle. Used on ships of thewhaleback type and on the forward weather deck oftorpedo boats."[108]
Indinghy sailing especially (but also in other boats), a boat is said to be "turtling" or to "turn turtle" when the boat is fully inverted with themast pointing near vertically downwards, but may remain floating.[A][109][110][111]
Adeck on a generalcargo ship located between themain deck (orweather deck) and thehold space. A general cargo ship may have one or two tweendecks (or none at all).
tweendeck space
The space on atweendeck available for carrying cargo or other uses.
A command used to co-ordinate a group of people pulling on a rope. Originally a sailing navy term referring to the two members of a gun crew (numbers two and six) who ran out the gun by pulling on the ropes that secured it in place.
two blocks
When the twoblocks in atackle have become so close that no further movement is possible as in chock-a-block.[2]
tye
A chain or rope used for hoisting or lowering ayard. A tye runs from the horizontal center of a given yard to a correspondingmast and from there down to atackle. Sometimes more specifically called achain tye or arope tye.[96]
A measurement of the empty space in large tanks or holds for bulk solids. Used to determine quantity of material in tank for volume and stability calculations. Often used in place ofsounding for tanks which may carry more viscous or aggressive liquids; or if the tank is extremely deep.
A method employed by navies to transfer fuel, munitions, and stores from one ship to another whileunderway. Sometimes abbreviated asUNREP.
U.N.P.O.C.
An abbreviation for "Unable to navigate, probably on course"; a 19th-century term used in log books of vessels left without accuratenavigational guidance due to poor visibility and/or proximity to theNorth Pole (where magnetic compasses are difficult or impossible to use). Dropped out of common usage in the 1950s with improvements in maritime navigational aids.
2. To remove anoar ormast from its normal position.
up-and-down
The description given to the position of theanchor chain, usually used when the anchor is being raised and indicating that the chain has been hauled in tightly such that the vessel is floating directly above the anchor, which is just about to be broken out of the ground. Used more rarely to refer to a situation where the anchor chain is slack and hangs vertically down from thehawsepipe.[36]
up-behind
An order toslack off quickly and run slack to a belaying point. This order is given when a line or wire has been stopped off or falls have beenfour-in-hand and the hauling part is to be belayed.
1. Aline leading from thegaff to either side of thedeck, used to prevent the gaff from sagging.[96]
2. One of a pair of ropes leading from the deck to the head of aspritsail. It steadies thesprit and can be used to control the sail's performance during atack. The vang fall blocks are mounted slightlyafore the main horse while rolling vangs are extrapreventers which lead forward to keep the sail toleeward in heavy weather.[2]
A method of supply of seaborne vessels by helicopter. Abbreviated VERTREP.
very good
very well
An affirmative response given by a senior to the report of a junior, e.g. if thehelmsman reports, "Rudder is amidship, sir," an officer might respond, "Very good" or "very well."[36]
vessel
Any craft designed for transportation on water, such as aship orboat.
vessel of opportunity
A vessel not normally used for a specific function, but available and suitable for temporary application, often requiring temporary fitting or loading of necessary equipment.
viol
Alsovoyl.
A large rope used to unmoor or heave up theanchor.[116]
Colored cloths or sheets hung around the outside of a ship's upper works, both fore and aft, and before thecubbridge heads, used as an adornment during ceremonious occasions and as a visual screen during times of action in order to protect the men aboard.
1. A thickerstrake, consisting of a wooden plank or group of planks, in the outer skin of thehull, running in a fore-and-aft direction, to provide extra stiffening in selected regions.[5]
1. The living quarters of a naval ship that are designated for the use ofcommissioned officers other than the captain.
2. A collective term for the commissioned officers of a naval ship excluding her captain; e.g. "The captain rarely referred to his wardroom for advice, and this led to their discontent".
warm the bell
Royal Navy slang from the Age of Sail for doing something unnecessarily or unjustifiably early. Holding a half-hourmarine sandglass used until the early 19th century to time watches under one's coat or in one's hand to warm it allegedly expanded the glass's neck to allow the sand to flow more quickly, justifying ringing the bell rung every half-hour to announce the passage of time on watch earlier than if the glass was cold, hencewarming the bell and shortening the length of the watch.[118]
warp
1. To move a vessel by hauling on aline or cable that is fastened to ananchor orpier, especially so as to move a sailing ship through a confined or restricted space such as in a harbour.[119]
Alsocombatant ship, a ship that is built and primarily intended for naval warfare, typically belonging to the armed forces of a state, usually anavy. Unlike amerchant ship, which carries cargo or passengers, a warship carries only weapons, ammunition, and supplies for its crew. Anauxiliary warship is a merchant ship taken into naval service and armed for use as a warship. The termbattleship sometimes is used as a synonym forwarship, but this is incorrect, asbattleship has a far narrower meaning and refers only to a specific type of warship.
wash
The waves created by a moving vessel. Not to be confused withwake.
The allocation of crew or staff to specific roles on a ship in order to operate it continuously. These assignments, known aswatches, are divided into regularly scheduled work periods of several hours or longer to ensure that some portion of the crew is always occupying the roles at all times. Those members of the crew who are on watch at a given time are calledwatchkeepers.
A watercraft used to provide transportation on a scheduled service with multiple stops, usually in an urban environment, analogous to the way a bus operates on land. It differs from awater taxi, which is a similar watercraft that provides transport service to various locations on demand rather than on a predetermined schedule, analogous to the way ataxicab operates on land, although in North America these terms are often used interchangeably. A water bus also differs from aferry, which usually refers to a watercraft that shuttles between only two points.
A watercraft used to provide transportation on demand to various locations, usually in an urban environment, analogous to the way ataxicab operates on land. It differs from awater bus, which is a similar watercraft that provides transportation on a scheduled service with multiple stops rather than at the rider's will, analogous to the way a bus operates on land, although in North America these terms are often used interchangeably. A water taxi also differs from aferry, which usually refers to a watercraft that shuttles between only two points.
2. Astrake of timber laid against theframes orbulwarkstanchions at the margin of a laid woodendeck, usually about twice the thickness of the deck planking.
way
Speed, progress, or momentum, or more technically, the point at which there is sufficient water flow past a vessel'srudder for it to be able to steer the vessel (i.e. when the rudder begins to "bite", sometimes also called "steerage way".) To "make way" is to move; to "have way on" or "to have steerage way" is to have enough speed to control the vessel with its rudder; to "lose way" is to slow down or to not have enough speed to use the rudder effectively. "Way enough" is acoxswain's command that the oarsmen stop rowing and allow the boat to proceed by its existing momentum.
way-landing
An intermediate stop along the route of asteamboat.
way-lay
The verb's origin, fromwegelage, means "lying in wait, with evil or hostile intent". So to bewaylaid refers to a ship that has been taken off its course, route, orway by surprise, typically by unfortunate or nefarious means. InHerman Melville's 1851 novelMoby-Dick, the great white whale waylaid thePequod and sank it, with only a few souls surviving in lifeboats.[121]
A location defined by navigational coordinates, especially as part of a planned route.
ways
The timbers ofshipyard stocks that slope into the water and along which a ship or large boat islaunched. A ship undergoing construction in a shipyard is said to beon the ways, while a ship scrapped there is said to bebroken up in the ways. Also known as aslipway.
The tendency of a sailboat to turn towindward in a strong wind when there is no change in therudder's position. This is the opposite oflee helm and is the result of a dynamically unbalanced condition. See alsocenter of lateral resistance.
A British term used in the 18th and 19th centuries for any merchant sailing ship making voyages between theOld World and theWest Indies or the east coast of theAmericas, in contrast to anEast Indiaman, which made voyages to the East Indies or South Asia. The term most frequently was applied to British, Danish, Dutch, and French ships.
wet
(of a ship) Prone to taking water over herdecks at sea. For example, a ship that tends to take water over herbow can be said to be "wet forward."
1. A type of cargo steamship of unusual design formerly used on theGreat Lakes of North America, notably for carrying grain or ore. The hull continuously curved above thewaterline from vertical to horizontal, and when the ship was fully loaded, only the rounded portion of her hull (the "whaleback" proper) was visible above the waterline. With sides curved in towards the ends, whalebacks had aspoon-shaped bow and a very convex upper deck.
2. A type of high-speedlaunch first designed for theRoyal Air Force duringWorld War II, or certain smaller rescue and research vessels most common in Europe that, like the Great Lakes vessels, have hulls that curve over to meet the deck, although the "whaleback" designation comes not from the curve along thegunwale as in the Great Lakes vessels, but from the fore-and-aft arch in the deck.
3. A sheltered portion of the forward deck on certain British fishing boats designed, in part, so that water taken over thebow is more easily shed over the sides. The feature has been incorporated into some pleasure craft – aboard which it is known as awhaleback deck – based on the hull design of older whaling boats.
1. A type of open boat that is relatively narrow and pointed at both ends, enabling it to move either forwards or backwards equally well.
2. On modern warships, a relatively light and seaworthy boat used for transport of the ship's crew.
3. A type of vessel designed as alifeboat or "monomoy" used for recreational and competitive rowing in the San Francisco Bay area and coastal Massachusetts.
A structure on the shore of a harbor or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or moreberths (i.e. mooring locations), and may also includepiers,warehouses, or other facilities necessary for handling the ships. The term "wharf" is generally synonymous withquay, although the solid foundations of a quay contrast with the closely spaced piles of a wharf. When "quay" and "wharf" are used as synonyms, the term "quay" is more common in everyday speech in the United Kingdom, manyCommonwealth countries, and Ireland, while "wharf" is more commonly used in the United States.
A type of boat traditionally used for carrying cargo or passengers on rivers and canals in England, particularly on the River Thames and the Norfolk and Suffolk Broads.
A small singleblocktackle, used to raise light loads from a hold.[119]
whip upon whip
Connecting twowhips together. This runs more smoothly than using a double block with single block tackle, which would have the equivalent purchase. Can be used fortopsail andtop-gallanthalliards.[119]
whipping
The binding with twine of the loose end of arope to prevent it unravelling.[2]
A British flag flown as anensign by certain British ships. Prior to 1864, ships of theRoyal Navy's White Squadron flew it; since the reorganisation of the Royal Navy in 1864, it has been flown by all Royal Navy ships andshore establishments,yachts of members of theRoyal Yacht Squadron, and ships ofTrinity House escorting thereigning monarch of the United Kingdom.
wide berth
To leave room between two ships moored (berthed) in order to allow space for manoeuvring.
A mechanical device for pulling on a rope (such as asheet orhalyard), usually equipped with apawl to assist in control. It may be hand-operated or powered.
wind-over-tide
Sea conditions in which a tidal current and a wind are moving in opposite directions, leading to short, heavy seas.
A large iron- or steel-hulledsquare-rigged sailing ship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries with three, four, or fivemasts, built mainly between the 1870s and 1900 to carry cargo on long voyages.
Awinch mechanism, usually with a horizontal axis, designed to move very heavy loads. Used where mechanical advantage greater than that obtainable byblock and tackle was needed (such as raising theanchor on small ships).[119]
windsail
A wide tube or funnel of canvas used to convey a stream of air into the lower compartments of a ship for ventilation.
In the direction that the wind is coming from. Contrastleeward.
wing
An extension on the side of a vessel, e.g. abridge wing is an extension of thebridge to both sides, intended to allow bridge personnel a full view to aid in the manoeuvring of the ship.
The most junior rate among personnel who work in the engine room of a ship, responsible for cleaning the engine spaces and machinery and assisting the engineers as directed. A wiper is often serving an apprenticeship to become anoiler.
working up
Training on a warship to achieve the best possible effectiveness, usually after commissioning or a refit.[122]
To apply a multilayered protection against chafing and deterioration to a section ofline by layingyarns to fill in thecuntlines (worming), wrapping marline or other smallstuff around it (serving), and stitching a covering of canvas over all (parcelling).[123] It can be applied to the entire length of a line, such as ashroud, or selectively to specific parts of a line, such as over the spliced ends of astay, where the chafe on the middle section of the stay precludes complete protection.
1. A Mediterranean sailing ship, usually employed for trading, that is propelled by a combination oflateen sails and oars and characterized by a distinctive hull with a pronounced overhangingbow andstern; early xebecs had twomasts and later ones had three.
2. A small, fastwarship of the 16th to 19th centuries similar in design to a trading xebec and used almost exclusively in the Mediterranean Sea. This kind of xebec was slightly smaller than a contemporaryfrigate and mounted slightly fewer guns.
xebec-frigate
A European warship that appeared late in the history of thexebec. It was fullysquare-rigged but otherwise designed like an ordinary xebec.
The name initially given to a ship during its construction. The yard name may or may not be the same as the officially registered name, which is provided after completion of the vessel.
yard number
The number assigned to a ship built by a particularshipyard. Each shipyard typically numbers the ships that it has built in consecutive order. One use is to identify the ship before a name has been chosen.
The very end of ayard. Often mistaken for the yard itself, which refers to the entirespar. As in to hang "from the yardarm" and the sun being "over the yardarm" (late enough to have a drink).[96]
yar
(of a vessel, especially a sailing vessel) Quick, agile, and easy to steer,hand, andreef.
yarr
Acknowledgement of an order, or agreement. Alsoaye, aye.
1. Afore-and-aft-rigged sailing vessel with two masts, main and mizzen, the mizzen stepped abaft the rudder post.
2. An un-decked boat, often beach-launched, worked under both oar and sail, and generallyclinker-built. Used for fishing, serving ships in anchorages, salvage work, etc. Those from the northern parts of Britain tended to be double-ended.[35]: 74
yawl boat
A rowboat on davits at the stern of the boat.
yeoman
A U.S. Navy enlisted rating (YN) responsible for administrative duties.
A type of Scottish sailboat introduced in 1879, used for fishing. A zulu iscarvel-built, with the vertical stem of afifie and the steeply raked stern of askaffie; two masts rigged with three sails (fore, mizzen, and jib); and a longer deck and shorterkeel than previous Scottish fishing boats, allowing greater maneuverability. The term "zulu" came from theZulu War, which the United Kingdom fought in 1879 at the time the zulu was introduced.
^However, "to turn turtle" means putting a turtle on its back by grabbing it by the flipper, and conversely is used to refer to a vessel that has turned upside-down, or has cast off its crew.
^C.W.T. Layton; Peter Clissold; A.G.W. Miller."Dictionary of Nautical Words and Terms"(PDF).www.ssgreatbritain.org. Glasgow: Brown, son and Ferguson ltd., Nautical Publishers. Retrieved2023-08-31.
^M. Ben-Yami (1987).Purse-seining with Small Boats. Vol. 13 of Food and Agriculture Organization: FAO training series (illustrated ed.). Food & Agriculture Org.ISBN978-92-5-102267-2.
^abSaunders, Harold E. (1965). "10: Definitions and nomenclature for Seakeeping". In Taggart, Robert (ed.).Hydrodynamics in ship design. Vol. 3. New York, NY: Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineers. p. 156.
^Manual of Seamanship. Vol. 1. London: HMSO. 1937.
^Friedman, Norman (1984).U.S. Cruisers: An Illustrated Design History. Annapolis, Maryland: United States Naval Institute.ISBN0-87021-739-9., pp. 23-40, 48-50, 54-56.
^"Whipping to win: Measured violence, delegated sovereignty and the privatised domination of non-human life",Law and the Question of the Animal, Routledge, p. 118, 11 February 2013,ISBN978-1-135-09528-4
^ab"Rig".Merriam-Webster Dictionary. 2023. Retrieved2023-04-15.the distinctive shape, number, and arrangement of sails and masts of a ship or to fit out with rigging
^Adams, Jonathan (2013).A maritime archaeology of ships: innovation and social change in late medieval and early modern Europe. Oxford: Oxbow Books.ISBN9781782970453.
Admiralty Manual of Seamanship BR 67(1). Vol. 1 (Consolidated Edition 1972 ed.). London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office. 1972.ISBN0-11-770973-5.
Manual of Seamanship: Volume 1. London: His Majesty's Stationery Office. 1937.
Anderson, Roger C. (1994) [First published 1927].The rigging of ships in the days of the spritsail topmast: 1600 - 1720. New York: Dover Publ.ISBN9780486279602.
Benham, Hervey; Finch, Roger; Kershaw, Philip (1986).Down tops'l: the story of the East Coast sailing-barges (3rd ed.). London: Harrap.ISBN0-245-54487-9.
Bennett, Jenny (2005).Sailing Rigs, an Illustrated Guide. London: Chatham Publishing.ISBN1-86176-243-7.
Biddlecombe, George (1990) [1848].The art of rigging: containing an explanation of terms and phrases and the progressive method of rigging expressly adapted for sailing ships. New York:Dover Publications.ISBN0-486-26343-6. (1848 edition)
Carr, Frank (1951).Sailing Barges (Revised ed.). London: Peter Davies.
Cunliffe, Tom (2016).Hand, Reef and Steer: Traditional Sailing Skills for Classic Boats (second, Kindle ed.). London and New York: Adlard Coles Nautical.ISBN978-1-4729-2588-6.
Harland, John (1984).Seamanship in the Age of Sail: an account of the shiphandling of the sailing man-of-war 1600-1860, based on contemporary sources. London: Conway Maritime Press.ISBN978-1-8448-6309-9.
Kerchove, René de baron (1961).International Maritime Dictionary: An Encyclopedic Dictionary of Useful Maritime Terms and Phrases, Together with Equivalents in French and German (2 ed.). Van Nostrand Reinhold.ISBN978-0-442-02062-0.OCLC1039382382.
Leather, John (1979).Spritsails and Lugsails (1989 ed.). Camden, Maine: International Marine Publishing Company.ISBN0-87742-998-7.
Palmer, Joseph (1975).Jane's Dictionary of Naval Terms. London: Macdonald and Janes.ISBN0-356-08258-X.
Steffy, J. Richard (1994).Wooden ship building and the interpretations of shipwrecks (5th printing ed.). College Station: Texas A & M University Press.ISBN978-1-60344-520-7.
