| adventure |
A disaster that you survive, enabling you to brag about it. |
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| anchor |
Large heavy sharp metal object intended to get stuck on anything it comes in contact with.
Useful to keep the ship from drifting. |
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| beam |
The direction straight out to the side of the ship.
Since the ship has two sides this isn’t a very useful concept
unless you specify port beam or starboard beam.
Also the measurement of the widest part of the vessel:
“She has a beam of nine and a half feet.” |
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| Becket bend |
Alternate name for a Sheet bend.
Possibly invented by someone named Becket,
or once used to tie up someone named Becket. |
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| belay |
To cleat off a line.
Also, to cancel an order. |
|---|
| bend |
A method of fastening two lines
together. § 1.4
Also fastening sails to yards, or anchors to rodes.
i.e. bending on the sail, anchor bend.
|
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| betias pole |
A movable spar used to pull the lower corner of the
sail taut when it would otherwise not be possible to do so
because you’d have to be standing outside the ship to be at the right angle.
This is most useful when we’re trying to sail into the wind.
Some sources spell this: Beti–ass. |
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| bilge |
The area underneath the deck. Also the substances which accumulate therein.
|
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| bilgemaster |
Crew member responsible for maintaining the condition of the bilge,
specifically the level of water
there. § 2.1.8 |
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| bitter end |
Originally, the end of a line which is beyond the bitt.
Usually, the very tail–end of the line.
|
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| boatswain (bos’n) |
Crewmember responsible for stowage and
rigging. § 2.1.3 |
|---|
| bork bag |
A cubical bag designed to fasten beneath a
thwart. § 4.1 ¶ 2 |
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| bow |
The pointy end of the ship, usually identified by a dragon’s head.
Located behind the rowers’ backs. The front of the boat. |
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| chart |
A map. |
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| con |
Immediate second–by–second command of the ship.
This position is usually held by the captain,
but it may be relinquished for various reasons.
This does not mean the captain is relinquishing ultimate authority.
Ex: “You have the con, Mr. Sulu.” Assuming the existence
of a hypothetical crew–member named Mr. Sulu.
|
|---|
| coxswain (cox’n) |
Crewmember who calls the stroke when we’re under
oars. § 2.1.7 |
|---|
| crab |
In addition to being a popular seafood,
a crab is the condition where an oar is trapped
and pulled down by the flow of
water. § 5.5 ¶ 3 |
|---|
| current |
The interior motion of the water. If you’re making two knots speed through
the water, against a one knot current, you are only really moving one knot
over the bottom. Currents can be caused by tides or inlets of water from
other streams or estuaries; but are not necessarily synchronized with them. |
|---|
| dinghy |
A small vessel used to ferry people and equipment around.
Frequently towed astern of, or carried on, a larger vessel. |
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| draft |
The depth of a vessel in the water. This may be modified by the load,
and any projections, such as the steerboard.
(“She has a draft of 18" empty, but around four feet
fully loaded with the steerboard down.”)
When the draft exceeds the depth of the water, the vessel is aground,
or in especially soft bottoms amuck. |
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| færing |
A four–oared boat.
This usually refers to the Gyrfalcon. |
|---|
| fathom |
Six feet. Two yards. Unit of measure used to indicate water–depth,
as in “two fathoms, four feet”.
Traditionally equal to the span of the outstretched arms of whoever
was taking in or letting out the lead or (in smaller vessels) anchor
line.
|
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| head |
The marine toilet.
Has nothing to do with the dragon’s head unless you’re a seagull. |
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| helmsman |
Crewmember who is steering. Also: Steersman. |
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| hitch |
A method for fastening a line to a fixed object. |
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| keel |
The main spine of a ship.
Also the part of the hull extending deep into the water,
usually to increase stability or to reduce leeway. |
|---|
| knot |
An intentional tangle in a line.
Useful for attaching things together.
Also a unit of speed measurement: one nautical mile per hour.
(1.15 land miles per hour)
|
|---|
| leeward (loor’d) |
The direction the wind is blowing to.
Opposite of Windward.
|
|---|
| leeway |
The distance the ship slips sideways in the water as a result of pressure from the sail.
Generally considered undesirable. |
|---|
| line |
A specific use for rope. Rope is what lines are made of;
lines are how rope is used.
Every use of rope on board ship has a name,
which is usually the something–or–other–line. |
|---|
| log |
The continuous written record of the voyage, noting – in particular –
landmarks passed, times, distance covered,
contacts with other vessels and crew activity (or lack thereof). |
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| lookout |
Crewmember responsible for watching for,
and warning of impending disaster. |
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| make–fast |
Fasten, attach–to, etc. Another example of nautical jargon. |
|---|
| mast fish |
Elaborately carved block of wood that rests on the keel,
and helps to lock the base of the mast in place. So–called
because it’s tapered in such a manner that it resembles
the tail of a fish.
|
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| oar |
If you really have to look this one up, you’re reading the wrong book. |
|---|
| painter |
Towline for dinghy or færing. |
|---|
| PFD |
“Personal Flotation Device”.
This is Coast–Guard jargon for what everyone else
calls a “Life Preserver”. |
|---|
| point |
Unit of angle.
There are 32 points in a full circle.
These are usually used with reference to some known direction as in:
“Four points abaft the starboard beam” which means
“behind and to the right of the ship”. |
|---|
| port |
Where we hope to reach at the conclusion of a voyage.
Also: the left side of the ship, as viewed from the stern.
So named because we always bring it up against a dock instead
of the starboard side, to avoid damage to the steerboard.
A sweet, red wine, often served as a dessert wine,
produced exclusively in the Douro Valley in the
northern provinces of Portugal.
If someone serves you port, or another red wine,
it should be consumed on the port side of the ship,
so as to avoid navigational errors. By convention,
the port–side navigational lights of a ship display red,
while the starboard lights display green.
If someone serves you green wine, it is most likely not wine at all,
but the evil green concoction used to preserve the hull,
and should be poured into the bilge.
|
|---|
| running rigging |
Lines that are directly used to control the sail.
These would be the halyards, sheets and braces.
|
|---|
| standing rigging |
Lines that are not directly used to control the sail.
These would be the forestay, backstay and shrouds.
They are adjusted as needed to allow for stretching of the lines,
or changes in the shape of the hull, which is typically
needed only a few times per season.
|
|---|
| stern |
The other pointy end (see bow),
identified by a dragon’s
tail and numerous officers lounging about.
The direction the rowers are facing.
The back of the boat. |
|---|
| sheepshank |
Method of shortening a length of rope without detaching its
ends. § 1.4.3 |
|---|
| starboard |
The right side of the ship, as viewed from the stern.
So–called because that’s where the steerboard is mounted. |
|---|
| steerageway |
The ship’s speed through the water necessary for the steerboard
to serve as an effective control surface. You have to have enough
water flowing over and around a steerboard or rudder so that it can
turn the vessel. Frequently, in heavy headwinds or when the sail
is stalled, the ship’s speed through the water falls off and the
steerboard can no longer control the ship. Extra effort must be
put into the oars to maintain speed and control, or a different
point of sail is required to generate sufficient speed.
|
|---|
| steerboard |
The large wooden contraption hanging over the side of the ship,
always used for steering when under sail,
and usually used to steer when under oars.
(Sometimes referenced in books as a “side rudder.”) |
|---|
| steersman |
same as Helmsman. |
|---|
| step |
The large wooden block on which the mast rests.
Also the act of mounting the mast into this block. |
|---|
| thwart |
The rowing benches.
If you want to know why they’re called thwarts,
try running from one end of the ship to the other. |
|---|
| tide |
Laundry detergent, useful for cleaning everything you wore on the voyage.
Also sometimes refers to the level of the water in those bodies in which it varies.
Related to — but distinct from — current.
The time and intensity of high and low tides will vary
from day–to–day depending on the gravitational
pull of the Sun and Moon, the phase of the Moon and other
orbital components, the shape of the coastline, the wind,
what the Captain had to drink last night, and myriad other
factors.
|
|---|
| windward |
The direction from which the wind is coming. Usually the bow of the ship. |
|---|
| yaw |
The axis of rotation running through the mast.
Turning motion of the ship. |
|---|
| yeoman |
Crewmember who maintains the log. § 2.1.4 |
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