Glossary of Maritime Terms

1) Aboard- on or in a vessel

2) Abreast- when a vessel runs alongside of another vessel

3) Adrift- a vessel floating with the wind and tide

4) Aground- a vessel that is touching bottom and is unable to move

5) Beam- the width of the vessel at its widest point

6) Bow- the foward end of the vessel

7) Bulkhead-  vertical surfaces in the vessel much like walls in a house

8) Bulwarks- the raised portion of the sides of a vessel around the main deck to prevent crew, cargo, and passegers from being washed overboard

9) Capsize- to upset or overturn

10) Cleat- a fitting of wood or metal with two horns used for securing lines

11) Coxswain- person in charge while on a lifeboat

12) Crest- the top of a wave

13) Dead Reckoning- the practice of estimating a vessel's position by considering courses and distances made after departure from a known position

14) Derelict- a vessel abandoned or forsaken on the high seas

15) Draft- the depth of water required to float a vessel

16) Drogue- a type of sea anchor used to stabilize a vessel in dangerous seas

17) Fathom- a measurement of depth, one fathom is equal to six feet

18) Flare- a pyrotechnic device used for attracting attention or indicating distress

19) Flounder- to fill with water and sink at sea

20) Galley- the area on a vessel containing the cooking facilities

21) Headway- a vessel's foward movement

22) Heave- to pull on

23) Helm- the steering mechanism of a vessel

24) Hoist- to raise up

25) Jettison- throwing cargo and other materials overboard to lighten a vessel and help it remain afloat

26) Keel- the continuous section of a vessel running from the bow (front) to the stern (back) on which the vessel is built, the backbone of the vessel

27) Knot- a measurement of speed equal to one nautical mile (6,080 ft. per hour), one knot is equal to one and one seventh miles per hour and it is the length of one minute of longitude at the equator

28) Leeward- the side of the vessel opposite the side where the wind is blowing

29) Marry- to tie two lines together

30) Nautical Mile- the standard unit of measurement for maritime navigation which equals 6,080 feet

31) Port Side- the left side of a vessel when facing foward

32) Quay- a dock parallel to the shoreline and accommodating vesselos on one side only

33) Rolling- the motion of a ship swinging from side to side caused by the pressure of the waves on the side if the ship

34) Seaway- the navigable portion of the sea

35) Seaworthy- able to withstand the dangers of the sea

36) Sheer- the curvature of a ship's deck from bow to stern

37) Sounding- the act of measuring depth of water by using a lead line or a fathometer

38) Starboard- the right side of a vessel when facing foward

39) Stern- the back end of a vessel

40) Sternway- the backward motion of a vessel when it is carried or propelled backward

42) Swell- a wave

43) Veer- to change the direction of a vessel in reference to the wind

44) Windward- the side of the vessel towards which the wind is blowing

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