The Bosun´s Mate Glossary of Terms

The Bosun´s Mate dictionary of Nautical Terms has been compiled from many sources and is constantly being augmented and revised in our attempt to capture as much of the rich yet complicated (and often conflicting) maritime termonology as possible.

You will find an extensive list of information about all sorts of nautical items from sailor´s knots to the sailors themselves, and from ships to the weather patterns of the seas they ply.

Find Terms

Browse Alphabetically:

* # A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Random terms, by category

Abbreviations Abbreviations and Acronyms (41 terms) SKAD Survival Kit - Air Droppable	Actions The things sailors do (8 terms) Skylarking Playing by climbing around in the Rigging. Especially when done as high as possible.
Directions Why say back when you can say aft instead! (20 terms) Lee 1. Away from the direction from which the wind is blowing. 2. Sheltered from the wind.	Expressions Common sayings and expressions from maritime lore (149 terms) Displacement speed The theoretical speed that a vessel can travel without planing.
Food The foods of the sea (2 terms) Scurvy A disease historically common to seaman, caused by lack of Vitamin C the British Navy started to fight it bu adding lime juice to their water - this was the origin of the slan "Limey"	Knots Various knots both functional and ornamental from the nautical to the ornamental and with both historic and present day value. (12 terms) Lash 1) To Secure or bind something using Rope or twine.
Life aboard Bits and bobs from life aboard ship (5 terms) Scrimshaw A sailor´s carving or etching wood, on bones, teeth, tusks or shells. Frequently used as a way to pass the time on long voyages then to be traded or sold on shore.	Maneuvers Specific sailing maneuvers (33 terms) Tack 1) (n) The lower Forward corner of the sail 2) (n) For sailing vessels: the Current side of the vessel that the wind is crossing first (Port or Starboard) v) The act of turning a sailing vessel´s Bow across the direction (eye) of the wind and changing from one ´tack´ (n) to the other.
Navigation The points of sail and seamanship (76 terms) Aid to navigation Any fixed object that a navigator may use to find his position, such as permanent land or sea markers, buoys, radiobeacons, and lighthouses.	Parts The parts of ships (131 terms) Galley The kitchen of a Ship.
People Important people and/or their positions in nautical history (14 terms) Nippers 1. Short lengths of Rope marled or braded and used when weighing the Anchor to bind the Cable to the Messenger or Viol. The (usually hemp) Cable was too thick to be brought around the capstain directly, and as such would be bound by the Nippers to the messanger which in turn was taken around the capstain. 2. The Boys or men responsible for working the Nippers were also referred to as Nippers themselves 3. Slings used when hoisting yards that were wet and slippery. 4. A lashed hammock wi...	Places Key locations of the maritime world (20 terms) Quay A wharf used to discharge cargo
Rigging Rigging components and terms (104 terms) Bend To fasten, one Rope to another, or to some other object, or a Sail to its spars etc...	Sails Sails, their parts and materials (30 terms) Cringle A fitting in a Sail that allows a Line to fasten to it (a large grommit)
Ships Types of vessels and some famous examples (22 terms) Yacht A sailboat or powerboat used for pleasure; ie: not a working Boat.	Spars The various spars used aboard ship (6 terms) Yard A Spar usually fixed horizontally to a Mast that supports a Sail.
Tools The tools of the trade (27 terms) Boat hook A short shaft with a fitting at one end shaped to facilitate putting a Line over a piling, recovering an object dropped Overboard, or in pushing or fending off.	unsorted terms awaiting clasification (36 terms) none found
Weather Meteorology and its relationship to sailing (7 terms) Fronts Used in meteorology to describe bounderies between hot and cold air masses. This is typically where bad weather is found.

Total Terms: 539 Total Views: 2136526