This Is Your Basic Sailing Language






A

abeam - directly to the side of the boat.
about - on the opposite tack.
aft - at or near the stern.
alee - to the leeward side.
aloft - above the deck.
apparent wind - the direction and speed of the wind felt by the crew. Combination of the true wind and that created by the motion of the boat.
astern - behind the boat.



B

backstay - any single wire supporting the mast from the stern.
batten - thin wooden strips fitted into pockets for stiffening the leech of a sail.
beam - measurement of the width of a boat.
beam reach - sailing with the wind coming across the boat’s beam.
beam wind- a wind at right angles to a boat’s course.
bear away - to steer the boat away from the wind.
beat- sailing against the wind by tacking (sailing a zigzag course towards the wind).
beating to windward - to sail to windward close-hauled, tacking as you go, to reach an objective to windward.
bend to connect two ropes with a knot.
block - a pulley.
bollard - a short heavy post on a pier or boat used for fastening docking lines.
boom - spar that takes the foot of a sail.
bow - the forward part of a boat.
broach - turn sideways to wind and the surf.
broad reach - the point of sailing between a beam reach and a run, when the wind blows over the quarter.
buoy - floating navigational marker.



C

capsize - to overturn.
catamaran .
catboat .
center of effort (coe) - the point at which all the forces acting on the sails are concentrated.
center of lateral resistance (CLR) - the underwater center of pressure about which a boat pivots when changing course.
centerboard - retractable keel to stop a boat’s leeward drift.
chain plate- metal fitting bolted to the side of a boat to hold the ends of stays and shrouds.
cleat- fitting to which a line is secured, without knotting.
clew- aft bottom corner of a sail, where the foot and leech meet.
close-hauled- sailing close to the wind with sails pulled in.
close reach - the point of sailing between close-hauled and a beam reach, when the wind blows forward of the beam.
come about - to change course so as to be sailing at the same angle but with the wind on the other side.
course - the direction in which a vessel is steered, usually given in degrees.
cutter - single-masted fore-and-aft boat having an inner staysail and outer jib.



D

daggerboard - centerboard that does not pivot.
dinghy - a small boat used to ferry people to a yacht; also used for sailing or rowing; also called a tender.
downhaul - rope used to set up downward tension or haul down a sail or spar.



E

eye of the wind- direction from which the true wind is blowing.



F

falling off - turn away from the direction of the wind.
foot- a sail’s lower edge.
fore - at or toward the boat’s bow.
fore-and-aft- lengthwise, in the direction of the keel.
foremast - mast nearest to the bow.
forestay - the foremost stay, running from the masthead to the bow.
furl – tightly roll up a sail.



G

gaff - spar that secures the head of a fore-and-aft sail.
galley- a kitchen on a boat.
genoa - large headsail, which overlaps the mainsail.
grommet- rope or brass ring in a sail or piece of canvas.
gunwales - upper edges of a boat’s sides.
guy - adjustable steadying rope of a boat’s rig.
gybing - see jibing.



H

halyard - line used for hoisting sails.
hank- fitting used to attach the luff of a sail to a stay.
hard-a-lee- to put the tiller all the way down toward the leeward side of the boat.
head - a sail’s top corner; also a boat’s toilet.
headsail - sail forward of the foremast.
headstay- a forward stay.
headway - moving forward.
heel- a boat’s angle to horizontal, to lean over to one side.
helm- tiller or wheel.
hoist- the length of the luff of a fore-and-aft sail.
hull - the body of boat.



I

in irons - to head into the wind and refuse to fall off.



J

jib - a triangular headsail set on a stay forward of the foremast.
jibing - changing direction with the wind aft; to change from one tack to another by turning the stern through the wind; also spelled gybing.
jibsheet - line that controls the jib.



K

keel - centerline backbone at the bottom of a boat.
ketch .



L

lashing - a rope used for securing any movable object in place.
lateen - rig with a triangular sail secured to a yard hoisted to a low mast.
lee - the side opposite that from which the wind blows; the opposite of weather.
leech - outside edge of a sail.
lee helm- the tendency of a boat to swing leeward unless held on course.
leeward - away from the wind; the direction to which the wind blows, down wind.
line- any length of rope that has a specified use.
luff - to get so close to the wind that the sail flaps; also the forward edge of a sail.
luff up - to turn the boat’s head right into the wind.



M

mainmast - principal mast on a boat.
mainsail - boomed sail projecting aft from the mainmast
mainsheet- line that controls the main boom.
make fast - secure a line.
mast - vertical spar to which the sails and rigging are attached.
masthead - top of the mast.
mizzen - the shorter, after-mast on a ketch or yawl.



O

on the wind - close-hauled.



P

painter - the bow line by which a dinghy, or tender is towed or made fast.
point- To head close to the wind.
point of sail- the different angles from the wind on which a boat may sail; the boat’s course relative to the direction of the wind.
port - the left-hand side of a boat, looking forward towards the bow (opposite of starboard).
port tack- when a boat sails with the main boom to starboard and wind hits the port side first.
privileged vessel- a boat that has the right-of-way (ROW).



R

reach - sailing on a tack with the wind roughly abeam, all sailing points between running and close- hauled.
ready about - order to prepare for coming about.
reef - reduce the sail area by folding or rolling surplus material on the boom or forestay.
rig - arrangements of masts and sails.
rigging - ropes and wire stays of a boat; securing masts and sails.
rudder - vertical metal or wooden plate attached to the stern, whose movements steer the boat.
rules of the road Right-of-way (ROW)- regulations to prevent collisions between boats.
run - to sail with the wind aft and with the sheets eased out.
running rigging- all of the moving lines, such as sheets and halyards, used in the setting and trimming of sails.



S

schooner .
set - to hoist a sail.
shackle- a U-shaped piece of iron or steel with eyes in the ends, closed by a shackle pin.
sheave - a grooved wheel in a block or spar for a rope to run on.
sheet - line that controls a sail or the movement of a boom.
ship shape- neat, seamanlike.
shrouds - transverse wires or ropes that support the mast laterally.
sloop - .
spar- pole, mast, or boom, that supports a sail.
spinnaker- a large, light, balloon-shaped sail set forward of the mainsail when running before the wind.
splice - to join ropes or wires by unlaying the strands and interweaving them.
spreaders - horizontal spar attached to the mast, which extend the shrouds and stays and help to support the mast.
standing rigging - the shrouds and stays which are permanently set up and support the masts.
starboard - right-hand side of a boat looking forward towards the bow (opposite of port).
starboard tack - tack on which the wind strikes the starboard side first and the boom is out to port.
stay- wire or rope which supports the mast in a fore-and-aft direction; part of the standing rigging.
staysail - sail set on a stay inboard of the forwardmost sail.
step - a recess into which the fell of the mast is placed.
stern - after end of a boat.
stringer - a fore-and-aft member, fitted to strengthen the frames.
sunfish



T

tack - the lower forward corner of the sail, where the luff and the foot meet; also the diagonal made with the wind by a sailboat when close-hauled, (to change from one tack to another by coming about).
tacking - working to windward by sailing close-hauled on alternate courses so that the wind is first on one side of the boat, then on the other.
tell-tales - small lengths of wood sewn through a sail near the luff and leech to allow the air flow over the sail to be checked.
tender - see dinghy.
tiller - short piece of wood by which the rudder is turned.
topsides - the part of a boat’s hull which is above the waterline.
transom - a flat surface at the back of the hull to which the rudder is attached.
traveller - a slide which travels on a track and is used for altering sheet angles.
trim - to adjust the angle of the sails.
true wind- the direction and speed of the wind felt when stationary, at anchor or on land.



W

wake - a boat’s track, behind.
waterline - the line along the hull at which a boat floats.
weather - windward, opposite of leeward.
weather helm - boat with a tendency to swing into the wind unless held on course.
weather side - the side of a boat on which the wind is blowing.
whisker pole - a light pole used to hold out the clew of a headsail when running.
winch - a mechanical device, consisting usually of a metal drum turned by a handle, around which a line is wound to give the crew more  “help” when tightening a line.
windward- the direction from which the wind blows, towards the wind (opposite of leeward).

No Comments »