The Anecdotal Life Part. 81
This blog or rather, probably a couple of blogs, has been written in response to some querulous questions concerning definitions of boating terms. I have three lists that I compiled sent to me by other divergent thinkers, who stole them from some other divergent thinkers on the net. To reference a few, “Nautical Terms for Landlubbers” by Mike Blanche from Omaha, Nebraska from “ Sealetters”. Also, this website ,“members.aol.com/beardog632/lingo.htm”. For exacting souls, you can look up “Nautical Know How “ on the Boat Safe Home Page for the real deal in terminology. Thanks, also, to a few nefarious members of my family who threw in a few definitions of their own.
Nautical Terms for Land Lubbers and Land Lovers
Abaft—what you can take only in the most luxurious cabins.
Abeam—a large length of metal, supporting something like a deck or a wall.
Aboard—same as abeam (see), but made of wood.
Aft—anyplace behind the bow (see).
Amidships—condition of being surrounded by boats.
Anchor Light—a small light used to discharge the battery just before daylight.
Athwart—cross between foot fungus and growths on hands caused by handling or walking on very active toads.
Aye Aye—expression of surprise, usually followed by “cheewawa.”
Bearing—what goes on around the pool.
Berth—what you hope does not go on around the pool; also a parking spot for a ship. You have to look very carefully to see the lines painted on the water. Or, a little addition to the crew.
Boom—sometimes the result of a surprise jibe.
Bottom Paint—what you get when the cockpit seats are freshly painted.
Bow—bend over in honor; also the pointy end of the ship, usually passes through the water before the rest of the ship. OR! What the captain expects from you when he gives an order.
Bridge—where the Captain rants and rails (see) when he gets stern (see). OR! a good card game or what one smacks into while in the middle of checking the chart.
Bulkhead—very large restroom.
Cabin—closet-like space costing $300 per day, used for sleeping and not much else.
Chart—a type of map, which tells you exactly were you, went aground.
Clew—an indication from the skipper as to what he might do next.
Companionway—a double berth.
Course—what the Navigator is studying in his spare time at night school, hoping to figure out what an astrolabe or sextant is.
Davit—killed Goliath, never went to sea.
Dead Reckoning—a course leading directly to a reef.
Dead Rise—getting up to check the anchor at 0300.
Deck—52 cards, used in casinos.
Deviation—any departure from the Captain’s orders.
Dinghy—the sound of the ship’s bell.
Disembark—get off the Ark; a good example of just how old most nautical lingo is.
Displacement—when you dock your boat and can’t find it later.
Dock—member of the ship’s crew caring for passenger’s health.
Draft—type of beer served in a ship’s bar.
Embark—get on the Ark.
Estimated Position—a place you marked on the chart where you are sure you are not.
Fathom—measure of water depth, somewhere between 6 inches and 20 ft.
Freeboard—see abeam and aboard; this one costs nothing.
First Mate—crewmember necessary for skippers to practice shouting instructions to.
Flybridge—a temporary device used to fix a broken zipper.
For’ard—not a Mercury or a Lincoln.
Foul Wind—breeze produced by flying turkey.
Free Board--see abeam and aboard; this one costs nothing. Or,
Free Board—a food and liquor store supplied by the owner.
Funnel—the only place on the ship where you should see smoke, other than the bar, see stack.
Gallery—where the slaves sit and row, or, in the case of modern ships, turn the screws (see)
Gangway—ramp where groups (gangs) of salespeople await the ship’s passengers.
Hatch-- what to do about mutinous plots.
Hawser—passenger from Indiana.
Head—something like a scuttlebutt or scupper, but with running water.
Headway—what you are making if you can’t get the toilet to work.
Heave Ho—what you do when you’ve eaten too much.
Helm—southern Senator; also a steering wheel.
Hull—outside portion of a nut.
JACOBS LADDER—song popular at camp.
Jibe—either you like it or you don’t and it gets you.
Keel—barnacle collector. Don’t’ worry, you can’t see it, so don’t expect to be invited to admire the ship’s collection. If you are, decline. OR! Term used by first mate after too much heel by the skipper.
Knot—not a mile per hour, but a little more.
Landlubber—anyone on board who wishes he were not.
Latitude—what the Captain will not give his crew, when he is stern (see) or, ranting and railing (see). OR! The number of degrees off course allowed a guest.
Leeward—in the direction of Atwater, Petty, Greenwood, or Harvey Oswald.
Line—what can get you in good with the blonde in the bar. Or, what my brother-in-law used on ANY girls he met in a bar. OR! What you say to the Coast Guard after they board your boat.
Log—tree, lying down; could become aboard. (see)
Longitude—like latitude, but longer.
Mast—religious ritual used before setting sail.
Master—another term for the Captain; don’t pronounce it Massa’ or he may get stern. (see).
Mizzen—an object you can’t find.
Nautical Mile—not a real mile; too far to swim to shore.
Pitch—what the ship’s bow (see) does in rough weather; what the passengers do, on the other hand, includes the word “throw”.
Port—favorite nautical wine; also means “left” (both words have four letters, a mnemonic device useful to many); also city with ship berths (see) designed to create a giant sucking sound in the vicinity of your wallet.
Porthole—the entry to a harbor. OK, it really means a small window that costs an extra $100 a day, but how funny is that?
Quay—another word for dock (see); arguing about the proper pronunciation can pass hours ( kway? Kay?Key?Kwie? Who knows?)
Ram—an intricate docking maneuver sometimes used by experienced sailors.
Railing—what the Captain does when he gets stern (see); same as ranting.
Roll—small bread served in dining room; also another motion of the ship in rough weather, but greatly reduced by stabilizers.
Rhumb Line—two or more crewmembers waiting for a drink.
Screws—propellers; apparently turned by slaves in the galley. (see)
Scupper—drain at the edge of a deck, to allow water to run off/ if water is running in, see “sink”. OR! An upper dental plate that hasn’t been brushed for a month.
Sheet—cool, damp, salty night covering.
Shroud—equipment used in connection with a wake.
Skipper—slang term for a flying fish, or a flat stone.
Sink—unless there is a huge amount of frantic activity on deck, a large stainless steel unit in the kitchen; also, to quote Bill Dana (Jose Jimenez), “oh I hope not!”
Stabilizer—device to counteract Ship’s roll; several umbrella drinks will have the opposite effect, in case you want to experiment with what cruises were like before the invention of stabilizers.
Stack—refers to pancakes, funnels (see) or girls around the pool.
Starboard—like aboard (see), but pointing at the night sky; also means “right”, which has absolutely no mnemonic relationship, so no one remembers it without thinking about “port” (see) first. OR! Special board used by skippers for navigation (usually with “Port” on the opposite side.
Stateroom—cabin (see) where you can lie in state.
Stern—the Captain, when the crew acts like the crew of Love Boat; also the roundy (or, on modern cruise ships, squarish) end of the ship…usually passes through the water after the rest of the ship.
Swell—a wave that’s just great.
Tender—how your skin feels after the first day on a Caribbean cruise; also small boat to take passengers ashore, making them wonder why their port (see) taxes are not being used to construct a dock (see) with cruise ship berths (see).
Trim—what most Captains definitely are not.
Wake—what you won’t want to do at 6 a.m., if you attended the midnight buffet. OR! What one is watching when one hits something. OR! If it’s Irish, a heck of a good party!
Weigh anchor—complicated operations involving very large scales, necessary before every ship’s departure.
Windlass—completely still; no wind.
Yardarm—important ship feature, determining if it’s time for a rum.
Last of all, my nephew, Choo Choo, kindly defined for those serious and peevish few, who were demanding some of the simpler and more commonly used terms. He said,” This was all taught to me by my grandfather, Jack Rabe, in training on the high sea’s of Crystal Lake in a 1957 16ft. Herter’s fiberglass boat with a ten horse Johnson on it.
Planing: The point of acceleration at which the boat becomes level.
Trim # 1: The angle of the motor or outdrive on the applicable boat.
Trim # 2: Can also be referenced when using the trim tabs to level or put more weight on the front of the boat.
Fender: The rubber bumper that protects the side of a boat from docks and other boats.
Helm: Where you steer and control the boat.
Cockpit: Can be the same as above, depending on the boat.
Scuppers: Outlet vents in the stern (back) portion of the boat where the bilge water escapes.
Gunwales: The sides of the boat.
Bow: Front of the boat.
Hatch: Cover on the top of the deck.
Flybridge: A secondary place where the Captain can control the boat on the very most top of the boat and not to be confused with the Tuna Tower.
a…a… a… a… that’s all folks!
Copyright: June 26, 2008
Nautical Terms for Land Lubbers and Land Lovers
Abaft—what you can take only in the most luxurious cabins.
Abeam—a large length of metal, supporting something like a deck or a wall.
Aboard—same as abeam (see), but made of wood.
Aft—anyplace behind the bow (see).
Amidships—condition of being surrounded by boats.
Anchor Light—a small light used to discharge the battery just before daylight.
Athwart—cross between foot fungus and growths on hands caused by handling or walking on very active toads.
Aye Aye—expression of surprise, usually followed by “cheewawa.”
Bearing—what goes on around the pool.
Berth—what you hope does not go on around the pool; also a parking spot for a ship. You have to look very carefully to see the lines painted on the water. Or, a little addition to the crew.
Boom—sometimes the result of a surprise jibe.
Bottom Paint—what you get when the cockpit seats are freshly painted.
Bow—bend over in honor; also the pointy end of the ship, usually passes through the water before the rest of the ship. OR! What the captain expects from you when he gives an order.
Bridge—where the Captain rants and rails (see) when he gets stern (see). OR! a good card game or what one smacks into while in the middle of checking the chart.
Bulkhead—very large restroom.
Cabin—closet-like space costing $300 per day, used for sleeping and not much else.
Chart—a type of map, which tells you exactly were you, went aground.
Clew—an indication from the skipper as to what he might do next.
Companionway—a double berth.
Course—what the Navigator is studying in his spare time at night school, hoping to figure out what an astrolabe or sextant is.
Davit—killed Goliath, never went to sea.
Dead Reckoning—a course leading directly to a reef.
Dead Rise—getting up to check the anchor at 0300.
Deck—52 cards, used in casinos.
Deviation—any departure from the Captain’s orders.
Dinghy—the sound of the ship’s bell.
Disembark—get off the Ark; a good example of just how old most nautical lingo is.
Displacement—when you dock your boat and can’t find it later.
Dock—member of the ship’s crew caring for passenger’s health.
Draft—type of beer served in a ship’s bar.
Embark—get on the Ark.
Estimated Position—a place you marked on the chart where you are sure you are not.
Fathom—measure of water depth, somewhere between 6 inches and 20 ft.
Freeboard—see abeam and aboard; this one costs nothing.
First Mate—crewmember necessary for skippers to practice shouting instructions to.
Flybridge—a temporary device used to fix a broken zipper.
For’ard—not a Mercury or a Lincoln.
Foul Wind—breeze produced by flying turkey.
Free Board--see abeam and aboard; this one costs nothing. Or,
Free Board—a food and liquor store supplied by the owner.
Funnel—the only place on the ship where you should see smoke, other than the bar, see stack.
Gallery—where the slaves sit and row, or, in the case of modern ships, turn the screws (see)
Gangway—ramp where groups (gangs) of salespeople await the ship’s passengers.
Hatch-- what to do about mutinous plots.
Hawser—passenger from Indiana.
Head—something like a scuttlebutt or scupper, but with running water.
Headway—what you are making if you can’t get the toilet to work.
Heave Ho—what you do when you’ve eaten too much.
Helm—southern Senator; also a steering wheel.
Hull—outside portion of a nut.
JACOBS LADDER—song popular at camp.
Jibe—either you like it or you don’t and it gets you.
Keel—barnacle collector. Don’t’ worry, you can’t see it, so don’t expect to be invited to admire the ship’s collection. If you are, decline. OR! Term used by first mate after too much heel by the skipper.
Knot—not a mile per hour, but a little more.
Landlubber—anyone on board who wishes he were not.
Latitude—what the Captain will not give his crew, when he is stern (see) or, ranting and railing (see). OR! The number of degrees off course allowed a guest.
Leeward—in the direction of Atwater, Petty, Greenwood, or Harvey Oswald.
Line—what can get you in good with the blonde in the bar. Or, what my brother-in-law used on ANY girls he met in a bar. OR! What you say to the Coast Guard after they board your boat.
Log—tree, lying down; could become aboard. (see)
Longitude—like latitude, but longer.
Mast—religious ritual used before setting sail.
Master—another term for the Captain; don’t pronounce it Massa’ or he may get stern. (see).
Mizzen—an object you can’t find.
Nautical Mile—not a real mile; too far to swim to shore.
Pitch—what the ship’s bow (see) does in rough weather; what the passengers do, on the other hand, includes the word “throw”.
Port—favorite nautical wine; also means “left” (both words have four letters, a mnemonic device useful to many); also city with ship berths (see) designed to create a giant sucking sound in the vicinity of your wallet.
Porthole—the entry to a harbor. OK, it really means a small window that costs an extra $100 a day, but how funny is that?
Quay—another word for dock (see); arguing about the proper pronunciation can pass hours ( kway? Kay?Key?Kwie? Who knows?)
Ram—an intricate docking maneuver sometimes used by experienced sailors.
Railing—what the Captain does when he gets stern (see); same as ranting.
Roll—small bread served in dining room; also another motion of the ship in rough weather, but greatly reduced by stabilizers.
Rhumb Line—two or more crewmembers waiting for a drink.
Screws—propellers; apparently turned by slaves in the galley. (see)
Scupper—drain at the edge of a deck, to allow water to run off/ if water is running in, see “sink”. OR! An upper dental plate that hasn’t been brushed for a month.
Sheet—cool, damp, salty night covering.
Shroud—equipment used in connection with a wake.
Skipper—slang term for a flying fish, or a flat stone.
Sink—unless there is a huge amount of frantic activity on deck, a large stainless steel unit in the kitchen; also, to quote Bill Dana (Jose Jimenez), “oh I hope not!”
Stabilizer—device to counteract Ship’s roll; several umbrella drinks will have the opposite effect, in case you want to experiment with what cruises were like before the invention of stabilizers.
Stack—refers to pancakes, funnels (see) or girls around the pool.
Starboard—like aboard (see), but pointing at the night sky; also means “right”, which has absolutely no mnemonic relationship, so no one remembers it without thinking about “port” (see) first. OR! Special board used by skippers for navigation (usually with “Port” on the opposite side.
Stateroom—cabin (see) where you can lie in state.
Stern—the Captain, when the crew acts like the crew of Love Boat; also the roundy (or, on modern cruise ships, squarish) end of the ship…usually passes through the water after the rest of the ship.
Swell—a wave that’s just great.
Tender—how your skin feels after the first day on a Caribbean cruise; also small boat to take passengers ashore, making them wonder why their port (see) taxes are not being used to construct a dock (see) with cruise ship berths (see).
Trim—what most Captains definitely are not.
Wake—what you won’t want to do at 6 a.m., if you attended the midnight buffet. OR! What one is watching when one hits something. OR! If it’s Irish, a heck of a good party!
Weigh anchor—complicated operations involving very large scales, necessary before every ship’s departure.
Windlass—completely still; no wind.
Yardarm—important ship feature, determining if it’s time for a rum.
Last of all, my nephew, Choo Choo, kindly defined for those serious and peevish few, who were demanding some of the simpler and more commonly used terms. He said,” This was all taught to me by my grandfather, Jack Rabe, in training on the high sea’s of Crystal Lake in a 1957 16ft. Herter’s fiberglass boat with a ten horse Johnson on it.
Planing: The point of acceleration at which the boat becomes level.
Trim # 1: The angle of the motor or outdrive on the applicable boat.
Trim # 2: Can also be referenced when using the trim tabs to level or put more weight on the front of the boat.
Fender: The rubber bumper that protects the side of a boat from docks and other boats.
Helm: Where you steer and control the boat.
Cockpit: Can be the same as above, depending on the boat.
Scuppers: Outlet vents in the stern (back) portion of the boat where the bilge water escapes.
Gunwales: The sides of the boat.
Bow: Front of the boat.
Hatch: Cover on the top of the deck.
Flybridge: A secondary place where the Captain can control the boat on the very most top of the boat and not to be confused with the Tuna Tower.
a…a… a… a… that’s all folks!
Copyright: June 26, 2008
posted by The Anecdotal Life at 2:12 PM
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