Magnetic north: The direction to the magnetic north pole, which does not match with the geographic North Pole
Magnetic variation: The variant angle of the difference between magnetic and geographic North Pole. The variation results from the movement of the magnetic North Pole.
Mainmast: As other definitions generally fail, “mainmast” refers to the biggest mast on a vessel
Mainsail: The lowest sail on the mainmast
Marline Selling: Tool to open the strands of a line or rope when splicing
Mast: A vertical spar that holds the sails and their respective rigging
Mast gate: The point at which the mast enters the foredeck of a boat
Masthead: The top end of a mast
Mast spanner: A device that allows the control of a rotating mast on catamarans
Mayday: An internationally valid distress signal that is repeated three times and has highest priority of all signals
Midship: Center of the vessel, middle between bow and stern
Mizzen: A fore and aft sail on the mizzen mast
Mooring: Action that secures a boat to a pier, anchorage or buoy
N
Naked sailing: A theme for pleasure sailing done with s partly or completely naked crew around which an entire travel industry has evolved; popular for vacations that range from rather “normal” sailing trips done naked to adult swinger cruises
Naturist sailing: as above
Nautical Almanac: A calendar and advice book for nautical applications
Nautical Mile: One minute of latitude, 1852 meters
Navigation: The teaching of commanding a boat safely from one point to another
Navigation Regulations: Also “Steering and sailing rules”; a set of rules that govern the movement of boats with respect to each other
No-sail-zone: The area of plus minus 45 degrees into the wind in which boats generally can’t sail
Nude sailing: see “naked sailing” or our article on nude sailing
O
Oar: Long type of paddle that is applies in pairs to generate drive for the boat
Ocean: Synonym for “a huge chunk of sea”
Offshore wind: A wind blowing off the land, opposite of…
Onshore wind: A wind blowing onto the land
Outboard: Mounted externally to the boat, near the boat’s side – for example an engine
Outhaul: Rope or wire that is used to haul out a sail
Overhaul: To sort out mess with the rigging
Overboard: Outside the boat
P
Painter: Mooring line attached to the bow of dinghies
Pan Pan: The second-highest (after “Mayday”) priority signal that expresses distress
Pedestal: A standing post in the cockpit to support the field of view to the person steering the yacht
Pier: A platform to which a boat can be moored
Pile moorings: Moorings made from wood or metal piles driven into the ground
Pinching: Entering the no-sail-zone or sailing just on the boarder to it
Planking: In wooden boats, the boards that cover – sometimes form – the hull and that are attached to the keel and frame
Planing: A boat racing that fast, that hardly any part of the hull is under water; gliding
Planing Hull: A hull built in a way to support gliding at high speeds
Plotter: A nautical tool to plot a course on a map or grid of latitudes and longitudes
Port: Left to the vessel; a harbor
Privileged vessel: The vessel with the right-of-way according to nautical rules
Pulpit: Metal railing or frame around the bow of a boat, mostly for safety reasons
Pushpit: A pulpit around the stern of a boat
Q
Quarter: Sides of a vessel that are aft of amidships
Queen topsail: Small sail between foremast and mainmast
R
Rake: The angle of a mast
Reaching: Holding a course with the wind roughly abeam
Reef: An aid to reduce the size of a sail during periods of strong wind
Rig: The sum of all sails, spars and masts on a boat
Rigging: The sum of all ropes, lines and wires that hold and control sails and mast on a boat
Roach: The curved part of a sail that goes beyond a straight line between head and clew
Rocker: The curve from stern to keel to bow
Rode: Once again another term for the anchor line
Rope: Strictly speaking, ropes are “raw” lines, as soon as they are used on a boat, they should be called like that – which we don’t follow too much
Rub-rail or strake: A rail used as a buffer to protect the hull when the vessel is moored to a pier or another boat
Rudder: Underwater board that supports the steering of a boat
Run: A not-fixed line that is allowed to move
Running: Sailing on a direct downwind course
Running rigging: The sum of all lines and wires that control sails and that can be manually adjusted whilst sailing
Running Lights: Light signals that indicate the position of a vessel in the hours of darkness
S
Safe course: A determined safe route across dangerous water
Sail: A kind of cloth that is arranged in a way to catch wind and transmit its power via a mast and rigs into a sailing vessel
Sailing Rig: Pretty much all gear on a boat that is of immediate use for sailing it except the boat itself – sails, booms and masts, lines and wires.
Safe room: All water surface within a certain distance from potential hazards such as the shore
Schooner: A sailing boat or ship with at least two masts. Generally used for ships of larger size.
Schooning: To move forward quickly; historic nautical term
Screw: The propeller of a boat, in sailing especially for yachts
Sculling: A technique of “rowing” a dinghy with a single oar
Scupper: Drains in the decks or inner parts of boats (cabins, cockpit and alike) that lead water overboard
Sea Cock: A valve in the hull that protects the plumbing pipes of a yacht to water from outside the vessel
Securite: A safety signal that precedes a warning
Seaworthy: In principle, any boat meeting all necessary requirements for sailing offshore
Secure: To fasten a rope, line or wire
Sheer Strake: In wooden ships, the top planking that is normally thicker and more prominent than the other planks
Sheets: Lines or wires that are applied to a sail in order to control and adjust it
Ship: Tricky one – since this is a term widely applied; any bigger vessel that is seaworthy; a vessel that can carry a boat on board
Sideways force: The part of the force generated by the wind in the sail that moves the boat sideways
Skeg: A fitting to which the rudder is attached
Slack: loose ropes, lines, wires
Slip: A ramp for launching a boat
Sloop: A boat with only one mast and sail
Sole: The floor in a cabin
Spar: A pole on a boat that is normally used to spread a sail or to support lines and wires
Spinnaker: A light, triangular sail that is used in front of all other sails for sailing downwind
Spreaders: Synonym for crosstrees, horizontal structures that branch off the mast towards the sides of a vessel to control the angle of the shrouds
Springtides: Tides with the maximum difference between highest and lowest water level
Spritsail: An aft sail that is supported by a spar from the mast
Standing Rigging: Opposite of running rigging, all rigging that remains fixed on the boat to support spars and mast
Starboard: Right-hand side of a boat or ship
Stay: A line or wire that supports the mast in a direct line from the mast to the bow of a boat
Staysail: A sail that is set on a stay instead of a mast
Stem: The upright structure at the bow
Stern: The aft part of the boat (read more on the directions on a boat)
Stern line: A mooring line that runs off the stern
Strake: A term used to describe the wooden plank running from the bow to the stern alongside the hull
Stern quarters: The aft corners of the hull
T
Tabernacle: A hinged mast step
Tack: Forward lower corner of a sail; steering the bow of a vessel through the wind
Taffrail: Rail at the stern of a vessel
Thwart: A fixed seat or board in the hull of a dinghy
Tail: To pull on the tail of a sheet when winching
Tell-tales: Strips of some kind of fabric that are attached to sails to indicate the wind and right trim
Tender: Small boat that is used to transport passengers to bigger vessels
Texas: Not only desert, but among our favorite destinations for sailing with its access to the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean
Tide: The rise and fall of the sea water level due to the moon’s gravity
Tidal drift: Strength of the tidal drift
Tidal stream: Current caused by the rise and fall of the tides
Tiller: A control handle that is connected to the rudder with a universal link
Tiller bar: A device linking the two tillers of a catamaran
Topmast: An additional spar mounted on top of the main mast
Topping lift: A line or wire that supports the boom when a vessel is moored
Topsides: The part of the hull between the water surface and the edge of the deck
Training run: Not quite a run, but about 10 degrees off the course of an actual run
Transom: The surface that makes the stern of a boat
Transom flaps: Flaps in the transom that allow water to run off the boat
Trapeze: A device mostly used in racing dinghies to allow the crew to lean out further without falling overboard
True north: The direction to the geographic North Pole
True Wind: The wind that is felt by somebody stationary
U
Uphaul: A line or wire used to control the height of a spinnaker pole
Upwind: Any course closer to the wind than a beam reach
V
Vacation: The ultimate opportunity to start you own sailing adventure
Vessel: Any kind of boat, ship or yacht
W
Warp: Anchor line or mooring line
Weather shore: The shore if wind blows strongly offshore
Winch: A device that is used to pull in sheets
Windward: Towards the wind
Y
Yacht: From the Dutch word “Jaghd”, widely used term for pleasure vessels, mostly bigger boats primarily for sailing, but often seaworthy and equipped with strong engines
Z
Zail: Misspelling of sail, very uncommon
