GLOSSARY OF
SAILING TERMS A
Abeam - off the side of (at right angle to) the boat. Aboard - on the boat. Aft - at or toward the stern or behind the boat. Aground - a boat whose keel is touching the bottom. Aids to Navigation (ATON) - buoys and beacons that indicate channels or show the location of submerged hazards. Amidships - toward the center of the boat. Apparent wind - the speed and direction of the wind felt aboard a moving boat.
Astern - behind the stern of the boat. Athwartships - across the boat from side to side. Auxiliary power - sailboat with either an outboard or inboard engine.
B
Backstay - the standing rigging running from the stern to the top of the mast, keeping the mast from falling forward.
Back - to stop or to propel a boat backward by holding the clew of a sail out to windward.
Bail - to empty a boat of water. Balance - the capability of a boat to sail straight without changing the tiller position.
Ballast - weight in the keel of a boat that provides stability.
Batten - a thin slat that slides into a pocket in the leech of a sail, helping it hold its shape.
Beam - the width of a boat at its widest point. Beam reach - (point of sail) sailing in a direction at approximately 90 degrees to the wind. Bear away - to fall off, head away from the wind. Bearing - the direction from one object to another expressed in compass degrees. Beating - a course sailed upwind. Below - the area of a boat beneath the deck. Bend - to attach a sail to a spar or a headstay, or to attach a line to a sail.
Bight - a loop in a line. Bilge - the lowest part of the boat’s interior, where water on board will collect. Bitter end - the end of a line. Blanket - to use a sail or object to block the wind from filling a sail.
Block - a pulley on a boat. Boat hook - a pole with a hook on the end used for grabbing hold of a mooring or retrieving something that has fallen overboard. Boat speed - the speed of a boat through the water. Bolt rope - the rope sewn into the foot and luff of some mainsails and the luff of some jibs by which the sails are attached to the boat.
Boom - the spar extending directly aft from the mast to which the foot of the mainsail is attached. Boom vang - a block and tackle system which pulls. the boom down to assist sail control. Bottom - 1. - the underside of the boat. 2. - the land under the water. Bow - the forward part of the boat. Bow line (BOW - line) - a line running from the bow of the boat to the dock or mooring.
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Bowline - (BOE-lin) - a knot designed to make a loop that will not slip and can be easily untied.
Breast line - a short dockline leading off the beam of the boat directly to the dock.
Broach - an uncontrolled rounding up into the wind, usually from a downwind point of sail.
Broad reach - (point of sail) sailing in a direction with the wind at the rear corner of the boat (approximately 135 degrees from the bow). Bulkhead - a wall that runs athwartships on a boat, usually providing structural support to the hull.
Buoy - a floating marker. Buoyancy - the ability of an object to float. By the lee - sailing on a run with the wind coming over the same side of the boat as the boom.
C
Cabin - the interior of a boat. Can - an odd-numbered, green, flat-topped buoy marking the left side of a channel as you return to port.
Capsize - to tip or turn a boat over. Cast off - to release a line when leaving a dock or mooring. Centerline - the midline of a boat running from bow to stern.
Chafe - wear on a line caused by rubbing. Chainplates - strong metal plates which connect the shrouds to the boat. Channel - a (usually narrow) path in the water, marked by buoys, in which the water is deep enough to sail.
Chart - a nautical map. Charter - to rent a boat. Chock - a guide mounted on the deck through which docklines and anchor rode are run.
Choke - a control for starting the outboard, which changes the fuel/air ratio.
Chop - rough, short, steep waves. Cleat - a nautical fitting that is used to secure a line. Cleat hitch - the knot used to secure a line to a horn cleat
Clew - the lower, aft corner of a sail. The clew of the mainsail is held taut by the outhaul. The jib sheets are attached to the clew of the jib. Close-hauled - the point of sail that is closest to the wind. Close reach - (point of sail) sailing in a direction with the wind forward of the beam (about 70 degrees from the bow). Clove hitch -a knot used to attach a line to a spar or other round object. Coaming - the short protective wall surrounding the cockpit. Cockpit - the lower area in which the steering controls and sail controls are located.
Coil - to loop a line neatly so it can be stored. Come about - see tack. Companionway - the steps leading from the cockpit or deck to the cabin below. Compass - the magnetic instrument which indicates the direction in which the boat is headed. Cooling water outlet – The place where the cooling water exits the outboard. Seeing this discharge verifies water circulation. Course - the direction in which the boat is steered. Crew - besides the skipper, anyone on board who helps sail the boat.
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