Some Nautical Terms I am trying to master ...

Some Nautical Terms I am trying to master ...

Abaft - near or at the stern
Abeam - to the side of the vessel, at right angle to the fore and aft line on a boat
Aboard - on a boat
About - on the other tack, to pass through the eye of the wind
Above Board – on deck
Abreast - alongside
Adrift - floating free without propulsion at the mercy of wind and current
Aft - i) the portion of the vessel behind the middle area of the vessel & ii) towards the stern (of the vessel).
Aground - stuck on the bottom in shallow water
Ahead – move forward
Alee - to leeward, away from the wind
Aloft - topsides
Amidships - in the centre
Anchorage - place suitable for anchoring in relation to the wind, seas and bottom
Anchor Ball – a black ball visible in all direction display in the forward part of a vessel at anchor
Anchor Light – a white light visible in all direction display in the forward part of a vessel at anchor
Apparent wind - wind felt on a vessel underway
Astern - going backwards
Athwart - across
Athwartships - running surface at the stern
Aweigh - anchor unhooked from the bottom
Ballast - weight in the keel or lowest part of the hull placed there to balance the boat
Bar - bank or shoal at the entrance of a harbour
Batten - wooden or plastic slat inserted in the leach of a sail
Beam - a boat's greatest width
Beam reach - point of sail where the boat is sailing at a right angle to the apparent wind
Beamy - a wide boat
Bearing i) direction of an object expressed either as a true bearing as shown on the chart, or as a bearing relative to the heading of the boat; ii) water lubricated bearing that support drive shaft in front of propeller.
Beating - going toward the direction of the wind, by alternate tacks
Bend – i) make fast ii) a knot by which one rope is made fast to another
Bilge - the lowest part inside a boat's hull.
Bitter End - last part of a rope or chain the inboard end of the anchor rope
Block - nautical pulley
Block and line – an arrangement of pulleys and line which increases hoisting power for heavy work, such as pulling in the sail in a strong breeze
Boom - spar that holds the foot of the mainsail
Boomvang - tackle or hydraulic ram that restrains the boom from lifting
Boot stripe - different color strip of paint at the waterline
Boot top - painted band on the boat's topsides just at the waterline
Bottom - that part of a boat's hull under water (the under-body)
Bow - the most forward part of a boat
Bow Line - docking line leading from the bow
Bow Spring Line - bow pivot line used in docking (and undocking), or to prevent the boat from moving forward or astern while made fast to a pier.
Broach – a sudden, unplanned, and uncontrolled turning of a vessel so that the hull is broadside to the seas or to the wind
Bulkhead - wall separating a boat's cabins and providing structural integrity
Bulwark – a solid rail along ship-side above deck to prevent men and gear from going overboard
Buoyancy - the upward force that keeps a boat floating
Canvas - sails or area of the sails
Cast Off – To let go.
Chain – i) The rope or chain made fast to the anchor ii) 120 fathoms in length.
Chainplates - straps on the hull to which stays and shrouds are secured
Chock - an object to which line are secured on-board
Cleat – a fitting, usually with two horn-shaped ends, to fairlead for the anchor rode and docking lines
Clew - the after lower corner of a sail
Combing - a low wall around a cockpit
Cockpit - a recessed area in the deck containing the tiller or wheel
Companionway - an opening with steps leading down from the deck to the cabin
Deck - the top of a hull
Displacement – a boat's weight or the weight of the water displaced by a boat
Dodger – a piece of canvas protecting the cockpit sides
Draft - the distance between the waterline and the lowest part of the keel
Drift – a vessel’s leeway.
Drive Saver – a barely flexible coupling that softens the shock of immediate gear engagement - they break the electrical connection between the engine/transmission and the shaft and prop.
Ebb Tide – is a receding tide, a period or state of decline.
Even Keel - a boat is floating on its designed waterline, it is said to be floating on an even keel.
Fairlead - a fitting through which a line passes so chafe is avoided
Fairway - the middle of a channel or between piers in a marina
Fathom – 6 feet
Fender - a bumper hung between a boat and a float or a pier
Foot - the bottom edge of a sail
Forepeak - storage compartment in the bow
Foresail - a jib
Forestay - a stay running from the foredeck to the upper part of the mast
Freeboard - distance from the deck to the water
Furl – to roll up a sail snugly
Furling sail - a sail that rolls around a boom or head stay
Galley - a boat's kitchen
Genoa - a large jib, which overlaps at least part of the headsail
Gooseneck - a fitting securing the forward end of the boom to the mast
Ground tackle - anchor plus anchor rode.
Hatch - opening in a deck covered by a hatch cover
Headway - traveling towards the destination
Hove To - a manoeuvre in which sails are set to minimize the boats headway
House - the roof of the cabin extending above deck
Hull - the boat's shell, exclusive of deck, cabin and rig
Jib - a sail carried on the head stay or forestay
Jibing (Gybing) - changing the boat's direction when the wind is from the back
Kedge Off - use an anchor to pull a grounded boat to deep water
Keel - an appendage under the hull that counteracts leeway and heeling forces
Knot – i) a measure of speed equal to one nautical mile (6,076 feet) per hour; ii) A fastening made by interweaving rope to form a stopper, to enclose or bind an object:
Lanyard – a short line used for making anything fast or used as a handle.
Latitude - distance north or south of the equator measured and expressed in degrees.
Launch - putting a boat into the water
Layout - arrangement of gear on deck or furniture in the cabin
Lee - side sheltered from the wind, if a vessel has the wind on her starboard side, that will be the weather, and the larboard will be the lee side, under the lee of anything, is when you have that between you and the wind.
Leech - the after edge of a sail
Leeward - the lee side, in a direction opposite to that from which the wind blows, which is called windward, the opposite of lee is weather, and of leeward is windward.
Leeway - sideways movement of the boat caused by either wind or current.
Length - Overall (LOA) - distance between tip of bow and end of stern.
Length - Waterline (LWL) - most forward and aft points touching the water when the boat is at rest
Lifeline - a coated wire, supported by stanchions, that encircles the deck
Line - any length of rope that has a specified use
Longitude - distance in degrees east or west of the meridian at Greenwich.
Luff - the forward edge of a sail
Mainmast - the tallest of two masts on a boat
Mainsail (Pron. mains'l) - the sail hoisted on the after side of the mainmast
Mast - the wooden or aluminium pole supported by standing rigging.
Masthead - the top of the mast
Masthead (Steaming) Light - located about two-thirds of the way up on the mast
Maststep - the support for the bottom of the mast
Nautical Mile - Nm = 1,853 metres = 2,000 yards = 6,080 feet Contrary to some earlier replies, a nautical mile is (or was) the length of a minute of latitude at the latitude in question, not at the equator.
Navigation lights - that are illuminated at night
Neap Tides – Low tides, coming at the middle of the moon`s second and fourth quarters.
Outhaul - a sail control that secures the clew of boomed sail
Painter - a bow line on a dinghy
Pendant (Pron. pennant)
Personal Floating Device PFD - term for a life jacket or other approved item to support flotation
Point - to sail close into the wind
Port (1) left side of boat looking forward; (2) a commercial harbour
Porthole - a small round window
Preventer - a line that prevents a boom from jibing accidentally
Pulpit - a stainless-steel guardrail around the bow
Pushpit - a stainless-steel guardrail around the stern
Quarter – i) part of a vessel`s side between the after part of the main chains and the stern, ii) the wind is said to be quartering, when it blows in a line between that of the keel and the beam.
Racer-Cruiser - a boat comfortable enough for cruising and fast enough for racing
Race - strong, rippling tide.
Rig - the spars, standing rigging and sails
Rode - the anchor line (chain and/or rope)
Roller furler - a device for rolling a sail for storage while still in the rigging
Rudder - an underwater board that is adjusted by helm to steer the boat
Running Lights – Navigation lights required to be shown on boats underway between sundown and sunup.
Safety harness - worn on the upper body and attached to the deck with a tether
Sail Controls - lines, tackles, and other gear to hold a sail in position and adjust its shape
Scope - ratio of the length of an anchor line, from a vessels bow to the anchor, to the depth of the water.
Scupper - deck or cockpit drain
Sea Anchor – a device used to reduce a boats drift before the wind.
Seacock - valve opening and closing a pipe through hull valve, a shut off on a plumbing or drain pipe between the vessel`s interior and the sea boat.
Seaworthy - able to survive heavy weather
Shackle - U shaped connector with a pin or bolt across the open end.
Sheave - wheel in a block upon which the rope works.
Sheet - primary sail control line which pulls the sail in and out
Short line - a short length of wire or line used as an extender
Shroud - side stay or a line or wire running from the top of the mast to the spreaders, then attaching to the side of the vessel.
Skeg - small fixed fin attached to the underbody near the stern
Sloop - a single-masted boat that flies one jib at a time
Sole - a cabin or cockpit floor
Spar - any mast, boom or spinnaker pole
Speed - the theoretical maximum speed of a displacement hull through the water.
Spinnaker - a light ballooning sail
Springs - highest and lowest course of tides, occurring every new and full moon.
Sprayhood - a fold up or fixed spray shield at the forward end of the cockpit
Spreader - an athwart ships strut holding shrouds out from the mast and providing lateral support
Stanchions - metal posts supporting lifelines
Starboard - the right side, facing forward
Starboard Tack - vessel is on the starboard tack, or has her starboard tacks on board, when she has the wind on her starboard side.
Stay - a wire supporting the mast
Stem - stiff behind, towards the stern
Stern - the aftermost part of a boat
Stern Gland - a coupling between an engine's gearbox and driveshaft
Stuffing Box - the place where the drive shaft exits the hull
Tacking - changing a boat's direction when sailing into the wind
Toe Rail – a small rail around the deck of a boat, the toe rail may have holes in it to attach lines or blocks.
Topping Lift - a line or wire that holds up the boom or spinnaker pole
Transom – makes the stern
Traveller - an athwart-ships’ running tracks on which slides a car connected to the main-sheet blocks.
Trim - Fore and aft balance of a boat.
True Wind – the actual direction from which the wind is blowing
Turnbuckle - a threaded fitting used to adjust a stay's length
Variation - angular difference between the magnetic meridian and the geographic meridian at a particular location.
Weather or Lee Beam - direction to windward or leeward, at right angles with the keel.
Winch - a geared drum turned by a handle used to pull halyards, sheets and other lines under strain
Windlass - special type of winch used for pulling the anchor rode
Yacht - a pleasure boat
Yawl - swing off course, as when due to the impact of a following or quartering sea.