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.

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Abbreviations Abbreviations and Acronyms (41 terms) COLREGS Short for "Collision Regulations"	Actions The things sailors do (8 terms) Pay out To feed out Line, hand over hand - usually over the side of the vessel.
Directions Why say back when you can say aft instead! (20 terms) Port When facing Forward, the Left side of the vessel	Expressions Common sayings and expressions from maritime lore (149 terms) Fast Said of an object that is secured to another.
Food The foods of the sea (2 terms) Sea-pie A favorite dish for the crew of tall ships. It could consist of almost anything, but the propper dish consisted of layers of meat, vegetables, and fish alternating with crusts of bread and/or broken biscuit - affectionately referred to as a Two or Three decker based on the number of layers.	Knots Various knots both functional and ornamental from the nautical to the ornamental and with both historic and present day value. (12 terms) Cat´s Paw 1) A tiwsting Knot made in a Bight of a Line to Secure to a hook or pin. Ideal for use with a sling where neither free end of the Rope is available. 2) A name given to a slight ripple on the water caused by a breeze during a calm.
Life aboard Bits and bobs from life aboard ship (5 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"	Maneuvers Specific sailing maneuvers (33 terms) Bear Up To steer closer to the wind, shore or an object.
Navigation The points of sail and seamanship (76 terms) Bearing The direction of an object expressed as an agnle in degrees or Compass points from the vessel´s meridian, or , sometimes, from the direction of the Bow, Stern, or Beam. An answer to the question "Where Away"	Parts The parts of ships (131 terms) Mainmast 1. The tallest Mast of the Ship, on a Schooner, the Mast furthest Aft.
People Important people and/or their positions in nautical history (14 terms) Limey A nickname for British sailors coined by the Americans. It referrs to the British regulation that all registered ships had to cary a supply of lime juice and issue the same to the crew to prevent Scurvy.	Places Key locations of the maritime world (20 terms) Lazarette A storage compartment Below decks in the Stern of a vessel.
Rigging Rigging components and terms (104 terms) Eye splice A splice to create a loop in the end of a Line, by braiding the end into itself.	Sails Sails, their parts and materials (30 terms) Reef Points Short Lines through a Sail at the reef band to Secure the Foot of the Sail to the Boom or Yard and thus reduce it´s effective area.
Ships Types of vessels and some famous examples (22 terms) Brigantine Two-masted vessel with the Fore Mast being square rigged and after Mast usually Gaff rigged.	Spars The various spars used aboard ship (6 terms) Jibboom A Spar Forward of Bowsprit that supports the Forward most staysails.
Tools The tools of the trade (27 terms) Fay The process of cleanly fitting togeather pieces of timber when shipbuilding to acheive minimal space between them.	unsorted terms awaiting clasification (36 terms) none found
Weather Meteorology and its relationship to sailing (7 terms) Squall A sudden violent blast of wind.

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