- The Nautical Dictionary holds technical terms applicable to sailing vessels, seamanship and navigation.
- The terminology developed during the Age of Sail (c.1450-1850 CE).
The Nautical Terms
- Abaft.
- towards the stern.
- Abeam.
- at right angles to the fore and aft line of the vessel.
- Astern.
- towards the rear.
- Adrift.
- to float without being steered or moored.
- Aloft.
- high up, on the masts.
- Amidships.
- midway between the bow or stern.
- Avast.
- a nautical command to cease, stop or desist.
- Athwartships:
- across the boat from side to side.
- Beam.
- widest part of the Hull.
- Bearing:
- relative to the heading of the boat.
- Ballast.
- extra weight added to a vessel, of lead, iron or concrete, to counter the force on the sails.
- Bear Off.
- push the tiller to the side opposite the mainsail, to bear away from the wind.
- Bilge.
- bottom of the hull.
- Bulkhead.
- vertical partition within the hull of a vessel.
- Breakers.
- formed when the ocean swell is twice the height or less from the sea bottom.
- Bunk:
- the Burdened vessel must give way to the privileged vessel according to the rules of navigation.
- By the lee:
- sailing downwind with the wind blowing over the leeward side.
- Camber:
- curve or depth of the sail.
- Companionway:
- main entrance and steps to the cabin.
- Dead Ahead.
- directly in front of the vessel.
- Dead Astern.
- directly behind.
- Eye of the wind:
- direction the wind is blowing from.
- Following sea:
- wind and waves from astern.
- Fore and Aft:
- in a line parallel to the keel.
- Freeboard:
- height of the deck above the waterline.
- Gunwhale:
- upper edge of the side of the boat.
- Grabrails:
- hand rail.
- Halyards:
- line used to haul the sails or yards.
- Head Up.
- turning the bow towards the wind.
- Head Down
- turning the bow away from the wind.
- Helmsman:
- sailor at the Helm, steering the vessel.
- Heavy Seas.
- Rough weather with large waves, requiring a different technique of sailing.
- Luffing:
- to head into wind causing the sails to flap.
- Off the wind:
- wind over the stern or quarter, broad reaching, any course not close hauled.
- On the wind:
- sailing into the wind or close hauled.
- Quarter:
- side of the ship which is aft of amidships.
- Rhumbline:
- as the crow flies.
- Roadstead:
- a body of water where ships can shelter such as Scapa Flow or Spithead.
- Running rigging:
- everything that’s not fixed and permanent.
- Jybing:
- changing the vessel’s direction through a following wind, this is easy and safe on a square rigger.
- Shrouds:
- ropes that support the mast.
- Splice the Mainbrace!
- pour out the rum.
- Squalls.
- sudden increase in windspeed with torrential rain, a recurring and unpredictable event.
- Stand on vessel:
- it has right of way in passing and must maintain its course. The other vessel must give way.
- Stay:
- is a line supporting the mast from the bow or stern.
- Stem:
- tip of the bow.
- Stow.
- pack an item in its proper place, like sails and ropes.
- Underway.
- the vessel is afloat, moving and can be steered.
- Upwind.
- to sail in the direction the wind is coming from.
- Wake.
- is the wave produced by a vessel as it moves through the water.
- Warp.
- a rope used to moor the vessel to the quay.
- Warping or Kedging.
- a technique for moving a becalmed or stationary vessel by hauling on a line attached to a kedge anchor, or a bollard on the quay.
- Yaw.
- turning motion of the vessel around a vertical axis. The other motions are Pitching (up and down through a horizontal axis) and Rolling (side to side through a longitudinal axis).
Points of Sail
- A Point of Sail is the direction of a sailing vessel under sail in relation to the direction of the true wind.
- Roman vessels were Square Riggers. In the Age of Sail (c. 1450-1850 CE), the Square Rigger could sail backwards briefly, it could stop suddenly and it could turn sharply. The Square Rigger’s fastest speed was on a Beam Reach, next fastest was on a Broad Reach, or Run, and the slowest speed was on a Close Reach or when Close Hauled.