Boating Dictionary

To reinforce the mooring by putting two anchors in sequence

Sail which pushes in an opposite direction to motion, used to brake or keep the boat stationary

Marine waves in a harbour

An anchor removed from its seat and ready to be dropped in the water

Standing rigging whichs support the astern mast

To clear water out of a boat

To empty the water entered aboard through a bailer

A bucket or dipper used for removing bilgewater from a boat.

Heavy weight which adjusts the draft of a ship and improve stability

Flag on the upper part of masts

Element of the winch with a particular shape which allows to recover chains

Marine conic crostaceans which adhere to hulls, very difficult to remove.

Diagram of the atmosperic pressure trend written by the pen of a barograph on a paper wrapped by a cylinder

Instrument used to measure atmosperic pressure. Similar to barometer but providing an immediate measurement

Centre of gravity

The lowest side of a sail, between clat and clew point

A pool on sea level, where bottom can be repaired

Equipped and sheltered area where ships can stopa

On naval maps, it is the line which joins points of equal depth

A funnel with transparent bottom used to observe sea bottom

Rigid profile inserted into sail leech to contribute to their shape

Batten compartment

Small buoy

Structural elements which support the deck. The width of a ship at her widest part

It indicates a bow moving away from the wind direction

To move away from a mooring, a quay or another boat

Angular distance between magnetic North and the observed object

To increase the angle in relation to the direction where apparent wind comes from

Compass equipped with azimut devices

English admiral who lived in the 19th century. He invented the homonymous scale used to measure wind

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Calm wind

Instrument used for splicing, made up of a wedge point which help strands to open

Wooden or steel ring on the basis of the mast, where belay pins are fixed in order to block running riggings.

In the past, it was used to mark time; today, it is used to indicate a danger singnal or position in case of low visibility.

Sail convexity

Name given to the rigs of a Bermudian sail

A bed in a boat

The lowest part of a hull

Extensible mobile wings mounted on the sides of the bottom to reduce roll

A hydraulic pump to bail out the water entered in the hull.

Point of an anchor arm

Structure which supports the magnetic compass. It usually contains compensation magnets

Hole in the floors or in bilge to empty water from bilge

To fix a rope to a bitt

Keel supports in a dry dock

Ratio between bottom lines and a cylinder, whose diameter is equal to bottom's depth. Value 1 indicates an almost cylindrical bottom; low values indicate a thin bottom. Catamarans have the highest block coefficient

Fore sail to be hoisted leeward the spinnaker with light winds

To approach to another boat

To assault a ship after boarding it.

To direct the boat to approach another one

Term used for all crafts with a lenght between 10 and 24 metres, including sailing and motor boats.

A person specialised in wooden boat construction

Cable or rope, usually provided with turnbuckle to fix objects

Wooden pole fitted with a hook or knob at one end, used for fending off or picking up lines at a dock or mooring/

Slipway where boats are placed to be repaired

The leading seaman in charge of supervising crewmembers when performing work on deck

Reinforcement sewn on the sail end to increase resistence

Wooden or aluminium pole supporting the lower part of the mainsail, fixed on the mast through a junction which allows it to change direction according to wind/p

To remove deposits from the hull

Immersed part of the hull.

The forward part of a ship

An anchor placed in order to be ready to use

Frothy waves raised by the boat

An auxiliary motor and propeller mounted athwartships at the bow, and employed to maneuver the ship sideways.

Very popular knot forming a ring

Member of the crew in charge of bow riggings

Wooden or aluminium pole supporting the lower part of the mainsail, fixed on the mast through a junction which allows it to change direction according to wind

To move the spinnaker pole from the forestay

To haul the manoeuvring rope by opening a yard or the spinnaker pole

A rope fixed to sail sides to fold them

Term which represents ‚B‚ in the international phonetic alphabet (ICAO)

To set sail by detaching the anchor from the bottom

Raised borders used to prevent water from entering the cockpit

Mooring cable located on the bow or the stern extended along the hull to fix to a quay

Coastal wind caused by a difference in temperature between land and sea.

Place which a ship is steered from

End of anchor arms

Container suitable for liquids

Swelling of the fore part of a ship to increase speed; terminal part of a centre board in a sailing boat, generally made of plumb or cast iron, used to increase stability

Lever with eccentric hook to close portholes,skylights or hatches

Vertical structure which separates two zones in the cabin. Sometimes, it can be watertight in order to increase safety in case of collision

Small pole used to let sheet hang out outboard by increasings their efficiency and preventing them from scarping on shrouds

Additional bumps used to change the sizes of the construction parameters of a hull

Floating element anchored on the sea bottom for mooring or signals

Rope fixed to the anchor ring