Ships & Seafaring

Identifies the different classes of boats, ships, and naval platforms operating on the water.

• Barkalso barque
  A sailing vessel with three or more masts, square-rigged on all but the aftermost mast.
• CAalso CH
  A US Navy hull classification symbol for a heavy cruiser.
• Canal boatalso narrowboat
  A narrow, flat-bottomed vessel built to navigate inland waterways and lock systems.
• Canoe
  A lightweight, narrow, open-topped boat propelled by kneeling or seated paddlers.
• Craft
  A general term for boats and smaller vessels, particularly those used for working purposes.
• CSS
  Initialism for Confederate States Ship, a historic naval designation.
• Dreadnought
  A historic class of heavily armored battleship featuring an all-big-gun main battery. Shop talk
• Eightalso racing eight, shell
  A long, narrow racing shell powered by eight rowers and steered by a coxswain.
• FACalso fast attack craft
  Fast attack craft are small, high-speed naval warships armed with anti-ship missiles or torpedoes.
• Gigalso captain's gig
  A light, narrow ship's boat used for ferrying personnel.
• Gondola
  A traditional, flat-bottomed Venetian rowing boat with a high prow and stern.
• Hotel load
  The electrical power required by a ship's non-propulsion systems.
• Hovercraft
  An amphibious craft that travels over water or land on a cushion of air.
• INS
  Indian Naval Ship is the standard prefix for commissioned warships in the Indian Navy.
• JS
  The official prefix used for commissioned ships of the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force.
• Launchalso captain's boat
  The largest and most capable boat carried by a warship or large merchant vessel.
• Man-of-war
  A heavily armed naval vessel propelled primarily by sails.
• MN
  A prefix used to designate a ship belonging to the French Navy.
• MSalso M/S, MV
  A prefix used before a ship's name to indicate it is powered by an internal combustion engine.
• Naval
  Pertaining to warships, military maritime operations or the design of ships.
• OBC
  A monetary allowance given to passengers to spend on a ship during a voyage.
• Rate
  A historical classification system for warships based on their size and firepower.
• RNalso Regia Nave
  The ship prefix for vessels of the historic Italian Royal Navy.
• Rust bucket
  A derogatory or affectionate nickname for an old, heavily corroded steel vessel. Shop talk
• Ship
  A large seagoing vessel capable of sustained independent operation.
• Sidewinder
  A traditional commercial fishing trawler that hauls its nets over the side. Shop talk
• Sloop
  A sailing vessel with a single mast and a fore-and-aft rig.
• Slushbreaker
  A derogatory term for an icebreaker with insufficient power or hull strength for thick ice. Shop talk
• SMS
  Seiner Majestät Schiff is the historic German naval prefix for His Majesty's Ship.
• Snow
  A historic two-masted sailing vessel rigged similar to a brig but with an extra trysail mast.
• Tartanalso tartane
  A traditional single-masted Mediterranean sailing vessel rigged with a large lateen sail.
• Train ferryalso Rail ferry
  A specialized roll-on/roll-off vessel equipped with railway tracks to transport trains across water.
• Vessel
  Any watercraft capable of being used as a means of transportation on water.
• Whale safarialso whale watching tour
  A commercial boat trip organized for paying passengers to observe marine mammals in their natural habitat.
• Yacht
  A privately owned vessel used strictly for recreation, racing, or cruising.

Details the physical components, framing, and compartments that make up a vessel hull.

• Aft
  The direction or position towards the rear or stern of a vessel.
• Anchor
  A heavy device dropped to the seabed by a chain or cable to hold a vessel in place.
• Backboardalso larboard, port
  An old or regional term for the port side of a vessel. Shop talk
• Bilge
  The lowest interior compartment of a ship's hull where water collects.
• Billalso peak, pea
  The sharp outer tip of an anchor's arm that digs into the seabed.
• Blade
  The flat, underwater hydrodynamic surface of a rudder, centerboard, or daggerboard.
• Bollard
  A heavy, vertical post on a dock or ship used for securing mooring lines.
• Bow
  The forward part of a ship's hull that cuts through the water.
• Bracket
  A short, angled structural support piece used in ship framing.
• Bulbalso bulbous bow
  A rounded protrusion at the bow of a ship designed to reduce wave resistance.
• Bulkhead
  A vertical partition that divides the interior of a ship into separate compartments.
• Bunkalso berth
  A built-in bed on a vessel, typically stacked in tiers to save space.
• Buttock
  The rounded, convex section of a ship's lower hull near the stern.
• Cantalso cant frame, cant timber
  A structural timber or framing member set at an angle to the ship's centerline.
• Ceilingalso ceiling planking
  The internal planking or lining attached to the inside of a ship's frames.
• Chainalso anchor chain, cable
  A heavy series of metal links used to secure anchors or handle massive loads.
• Christmas treealso status board
  A control panel covered in multiple colored indicator lights. Shop talk
• Cleat
  A T-shaped metal or wooden fitting used to secure ropes.
• Cot
  A historic suspended wooden bed frame used by naval officers.
• Davit
  A specialized crane system mounted on a ship deck to lower and raise lifeboats or heavy equipment.
• Dead door
  A heavy storm shutter fitted over the exterior of a quarter-gallery door.
• Dousing-chock
  A heavy timber fitted across a ship's apron to reinforce the bow structure.
• Entrancealso angle of entrance
  The forward underwater portion of a ship's hull where it cuts through the water.
• Eyealso eyes of the ship, hawsehole
  The extreme forward part of a ship's bow, or the reinforced holes for anchor chains. Shop talk
• Fall homealso tumblehome
  To curve inward toward the centerline at the upper sections of a ship's hull.
• Forefoot
  The lower forward section of a ship's hull where the stem joins the keel.
• Fork beamalso half beam
  A partial deck beam that stops at a hatchway or opening instead of crossing the full hull.
• Garboard strakealso garboard
  The bottommost line of planking or plating on a hull, attached directly to the keel.
• Hair bracket
  A decorative timber molding located behind the figurehead on the bow of a wooden ship.
• Hatchwork
  The structural components and mechanisms surrounding a vessel's cargo hatches.
• Holdalso cargo hold
  The main interior cargo storage space within a vessel's hull.
• Knucklealso chine
  A sharp, distinct angle or break in the curve of a vessel's hull.
• Lace piecealso lace timber
  A structural timber that supports the protruding beakhead at the bow of a wooden ship.
• Ledge
  A transverse structural timber placed between the main deck beams to support the deck planking.
• Loose cannon
  A heavy naval gun that has broken free from its lashings on a rolling deck.
• Magazine
  The reinforced compartment on a warship where explosives and munitions are stored.
• Nut
  A nut is a projection on an anchor shank that secures the stock in its correct position.
• Plank-sheeralso covering board
  The heavy horizontal planking that caps the top of a wooden vessel's framing.
• Poopalso poop deck
  The raised deck at the extreme aft end of a vessel provides visibility and crew space.
• Port
  The left side of a vessel when facing forward towards the bow.
• Portholealso portlight, scuttle
  A circular, watertight window set into the hull or superstructure of a vessel.
• Pulpitalso bow pulpit
  The metal safety railing wrapping around the very bow of a boat.
• Quarter
  The aft side section of a vessel's hull, between the beam and the stern.
• Ribbon
  A decorative painted line or continuous molding running along a ship's hull.
• Rother nail
  A heavy, large-headed nail traditionally used to fasten iron fittings to a ship's rudder.
• Runghead
  The upper extremity of a floor timber in a wooden ship's frame.
• Spoke
  A projecting handle on the outer rim of a traditional ship's steering wheel.
• Standardalso standard knee
  An inverted wooden knee fastened above the deck to support vertical structures.
• Stemalso stempost
  The main vertical timber or steel bar at the very front of a ship's bow.
• Tabernacle
  A robust deck housing or hinge system that allows a mast to be lowered.
• Topsidealso Topsides
  The structures, modules, and equipment located above the main deck of a vessel or platform.
• Waist
  The central, middle section of a ship's upper deck.
• Water linealso waterline
  The horizontal intersection line where a floating vessel's hull meets the surface of the water.
• Wheelalso helm, ship's wheel
  The steering apparatus used to control the rudder and alter the heading of a vessel.
• Wildcatalso chain wheel, gypsy
  A specially shaped wheel on a windlass designed to grip the links of an anchor chain.
• Wingalso bridge wing
  An extended outdoor platform on either side of a ship's bridge for better visibility.

Covers the spars, sails, blocks, and cordage used to harness the wind for propulsion.

• Abackalso Caught aback, Taken aback
  Describes a sail that is caught by the wind on its forward side.
• Acornalso Masthead truck
  A small, ornamental piece of wood fixed to the very top of a mast.
• Aloft
  Up in the rigging, masts, or upper works of a vessel.
• Antennaalso lateen yard
  The long, sloping spar that supports a triangular lateen sail on a traditional sailing vessel.
• Balancealso reef
  To reduce the area of a sail by rolling or folding a portion of it.
• Beatalso beating to windward
  To sail a vessel toward the direction the wind is blowing from by making a series of zigzag maneuvers.
• Beealso bee block
  A block of hardwood bolted to the side of a bowsprit to guide rigging lines.
• Board
  The straight-line distance a sailing vessel travels on a single tack.
• Bolt
  A traditional standard unit of measurement for a roll of sail canvas.
• Boom
  A horizontal spar attached to the mast that extends and controls the foot of a sail.
• Carcass
  An early naval incendiary shell designed to set enemy ships on fire.
• Catalso cat tackle, cat fall
  The heavy tackle used to hoist an anchor up to the cathead. Shop talk
• Fallalso boat fall
  The hauling part of a rope in a block and tackle system used for hoisting.
• Fireball
  A high-performance, two-person sailing dinghy recognized by its scow bow and flat bottom.
• Fish
  A curved wooden or metal splint lashed to a damaged spar or mast to reinforce it.
• Ghost
  To make forward progress in a sailing vessel when there is seemingly no wind. Shop talk
• Hamperalso top hamper
  The necessary but cumbersome gear and rigging located above a ship's deck.
• High
  Sailing as close to the direction of the wind as the vessel can manage.
• Hound
  Wooden or metal projections on a mast that support the upper rigging.
• Jam
  To steer a sailing vessel so close to the wind that the upper sails are pushed backward.
• Jaw
  The U-shaped inner end of a boom or gaff that fits around a mast.
• Jeer
  A heavy tackle used for hoisting or lowering the lower yards on a square-rigged ship.
• Jib
  A triangular sail set forward of the foremost mast on a sailing vessel.
• Liftalso topping lift
  A line running from the masthead to the ends of a yardarm, used to support and adjust its angle.
• Mail
  A tool made of interlinked metal rings used for rubbing down cordage.
• Main
  Designating the principal mast, sails, or rigging on a vessel.
• Mousealso mousing
  To secure a hook with a lashing across its opening to prevent accidental release.
• Mulealso mizzen staysail
  A mule is a triangular sail set between the mainmast and mizzenmast on a yawl or ketch.
• Palmalso sailmaker's palm, roping palm
  A heavy leather strap with a metal thrusting plate worn over the hand for sewing heavy canvas.
• Pendantalso pennant
  A short length of wire or rope with a spliced eye or fitting used to attach rigging blocks.
• Plyalso beat, tack
  To work a sailing vessel to windward by making a series of alternating tacks.
• Ran
  A specific coil of yarns wound onto a spun-yarn winch.
• Roach
  The curve built into the edge of a sail that deviates from a straight line between its corners.
• Runner
  A line passed through a single block to increase the mechanical advantage of a tackle.
• Sail
  A shaped expanse of flexible material rigged to catch the wind and generate forward propulsion for a vessel.
• Sheet
  A line used to control the angle of a sail relative to the wind.
• Skin
  The outermost layer of a furled sail that wraps and protects the rest of the canvas.
• Sling
  A heavy strap, chain, or rope arrangement that supports the center of a yard.
• Snakealso worm
  To wrap a smaller line spirally around a larger rope to fill the grooves between strands.
• Stay
  A heavy cable or line that supports a mast from falling forward or backward.
• Swallow
  The internal space in a pulley block where the rope passes over the sheave.
• Swigalso sweat
  To pull sideways on a tensioned line to gain a few extra inches of purchase. Shop talk
• Tailalso tail block
  A short length of rope spliced to a block so it can be temporarily tied to rigging.
• Tongue
  The upper central timber of a composite mast or a spliced rope segment in rigging.
• Top
  A grooved wooden block used to guide and twist strands together when making rope.
• Topsail
  The square sail rigged immediately above the lowest sail on a mast.
• Turn upalso belay
  To secure a rope by wrapping it around a cleat or belaying pin.
• Wearalso wear ship, gybe
  To change a sailing vessel's tack by turning its stern through the wind.
• Whip
  A simple block and tackle arrangement that doubles the pulling force on a line.
• Worm
  To lay small yarn or twine into the spiral grooves between the strands of a larger rope.
• Yardalso yardarm
  A horizontal or angled spar suspended from a mast to spread the head of a sail.

Explains the maneuvers, steering commands, and calculations required to pilot a vessel safely.

• Abaft
  A directional term indicating a position further towards the stern of a vessel.
• Abeamalso Broad abeam
  Positioned at a right angle to the centerline of the vessel.
• Abreast
  Positioned side-by-side with another vessel or point on land.
• Bagalso sag
  To drift or drop away from the intended course due to wind or currents. Shop talk
• Bear
  A heavy block covered with coarse matting used to scrub wooden decks.
• Bell
  A chime struck every half hour to mark the progression of a watch shift.
• Bend
  To securely attach a rope to an object or to join two ropes together.
• Bitter
  A single wrap or turn of an anchor cable around the bitts.
• Blow
  To force water out of a submarine's ballast tanks using high-pressure air.
• Branchalso branch certificate
  A formal license granting a pilot the authority to navigate vessels in specific local waters.
• Cardinal
  Pertaining to the four primary compass directions used in maritime navigation.
• Carry
  To successfully board and capture an enemy vessel in close-quarters combat.
• Characteristicalso light characteristic
  The specific pattern of light flashes or colors that identifies a navigational aid.
• Clubalso clubbing
  To drift down a river or channel with an anchor dragging to maintain steering control.
• Compass swing
  The procedure of turning a vessel through various headings to calibrate its magnetic compass.
• Crowd
  To maneuver a vessel too close to another ship that has the right of way.
• Dead zonealso blind sector
  An area around a vessel where radar or communication signals cannot reach. Shop talk
• Double
  To navigate a vessel entirely around a cape, point, or headland.
• DSC
  Digital Selective Calling, a paging system built into marine radios for distress and routine alerts.
• Ensign
  The principal flag flown by a vessel to indicate its country of registration.
• Fathom
  A maritime unit of length equal to six feet, used primarily for measuring water depth and anchor cable.
• Fenderalso fender off
  To deploy protective bumpers along the side of a vessel to prevent damage when docking.
• Free surface effect
  The dangerous shift in a vessel's center of gravity caused by liquids sloshing in partially filled tanks.
• Gripe
  To have a strong tendency to turn the bow into the wind while sailing.
• Handsomely
  The action of executing a maneuver or handling a line slowly, carefully and with steady control. Shop talk
• Ho
  A traditional vocal call used by lookouts to announce a sighting. Shop talk
• Home
  Fully secured or seated into its final, proper position. Shop talk
• House
  To lower, stow, and secure equipment safely out of the weather.
• Knotalso kt, kn
  A navigational metric indicating a velocity of a single nautical mile every sixty minutes.
• Labouralso labor
  To pitch and roll heavily in rough seas, putting severe strain on the hull and rigging.
• Lost with all hands
  A vessel that has sunk with no survivors among the crew or passengers.
• Lunaralso lunar distance
  A celestial observation measuring the angle between the moon and another body.
• Mark
  A physical indicator on a sounding line that shows a specific depth in fathoms.
• Maroon
  A loud, explosive rocket used as an emergency signal.
• Mooralso Tie up
  To secure a vessel in a specific location using lines, cables, or anchors.
• Nav
  A common shorthand for navigation, often used to describe equipment, lights, or duties. Shop talk
• Nitroxalso enriched air
  A breathing gas mixture with a higher oxygen concentration than normal air used in diving.
• NMalso nmi
  A nautical mile, the standard unit of distance used in maritime navigation.
• Nose
  Nosing is the act of carefully maneuvering the bow of a vessel into a tight space. Shop talk
• Pan-pan
  A marine radio distress call signaling an urgent situation that is not yet life-threatening.
• Passage
  A navigable strait, channel, or route connecting two larger bodies of water.
• Put in
  To enter a port or harbor, often as an unplanned stop.
• Quadrant
  A traditional navigation instrument featuring a graduated arc of ninety degrees.
• Rat
  A dangerous area of sea marked by rapid currents and jagged rocks. Shop talk
• Report
  To formally announce a vessel's arrival at a port or designated checkpoint.
• Rodealso anchor rode
  The length of chain, rope, or cable that connects a vessel to its anchor.
• Row
  To propel a small boat through the water using oars.
• Scuttle
  To deliberately sink a vessel by opening holes in its hull below the waterline.
• Seize
  To bind two ropes together tightly using multiple wrapping turns of a smaller line.
• Spring
  To pivot a vessel at anchor or alongside a dock using a tensioned mooring line.
• Stand out
  To sail or motor a vessel away from the shore or out of a harbor.
• Starboard
  The right-hand side of a vessel when a person is facing forward.
• Stiff
  Describing a strong wind or a vessel that snaps back upright too quickly.
• Tackingalso coming about, About
  The maneuver of turning a sailing vessel's bow through the wind to change direction.
• Unballasted
  Describing a vessel that is operating without added weight in its ballast tanks or hold.
• Variablealso variable wind
  A wind that frequently shifts direction and speed.
• Wakealso wash
  The disturbed track of water left behind a moving vessel.
• Weatheralso windward
  Pertaining to the side of a vessel or object facing into the wind.
• Weigh
  To lift an anchor off the seabed in preparation for getting underway.
• Windalso wind ship
  The maneuver of turning a vessel completely around end for end in a tight space.
• Yaw
  To swing off course from side to side around the vertical axis.

Focuses on the construction methods, materials, and repair techniques used in drydocks.

• Ablativealso Self-polishing, Copolymer ablative
  A type of bottom paint designed to wear away gradually in the water.
• Barnacle
  A hard-shelled marine crustacean that attaches itself to the underwater hull of a vessel.
• Block model
  A simplified scale model of a ship hull carved from a solid block of wood.
• Cross-spallalso cross-pawl
  A temporary horizontal timber used to hold ship frames at the correct width during construction.
• Deck over
  To finish installing the upper deck plating or planking on a hull.
• Devil seamalso the devil
  The longest and most difficult hull seam to caulk, located near the waterline or deck edge. Shop talk
• Fair
  Having a smooth, continuous curve without bumps, hollows, or abrupt changes in direction.
• Furring
  The addition of timber strips to a ship's frames to correct the hull shape or increase buoyancy.
• Groundwayalso ground ways, standing ways
  The heavy foundational timbers or concrete tracks that support a ship during construction and launching.
• Hard
  A firm, reinforced section of shoreline used for hauling out or boarding vessels.
• Main framealso midship frame
  The widest and most central structural rib of a ship's hull.
• Marine glue
  A waterproof compound used to seal the seams of a wooden deck.
• Overlaunch
  To stagger the joints of adjacent planks or timbers to prevent structural weakness.
• Pay
  To fill and seal the seams between wooden hull planks with a waterproof compound.
• Poppet
  A vertical timber used to support a ship's hull on the slipway during launching.
• Ramline
  A heavy cord used by shipwrights to establish a straight centerline along a hull.
• Repay
  To apply a fresh coat of hot pitch or tar to the caulked seams of a wooden hull.
• Ribbandalso riband
  A temporary longitudinal timber strip used to hold a ship's frames in alignment during construction.
• Ship lift
  A mechanized platform that raises and lowers vessels in and out of the water.
• Sny
  The upward curve of the planking at the bow and stern of a wooden hull.
• Spalealso cross-spall
  A temporary wooden crossband fastened across hull frames to hold them in position.
• Stealeralso stealer plate, stealer plank
  A short plank or plate used to merge two rows of hull plating.
• Stockalso building stocks
  The heavy wooden or steel framework that supports a ship during construction.
• Stuffalso slushing stuff, paying stuff
  A traditional mixture of tallow, pine tar, or resin used to protect rigging. Shop talk
• Surmarkalso sirmark
  A reference mark on a shipbuilder's mould indicating where timber angles align.
• Tabling
  A traditional shipbuilding joint made by letting one timber into another with alternating projections.
• Time and limealso time and material
  A shipbuilding contract based on the actual hours worked and materials consumed.
• Top and butalso Top and butt
  A method of laying tapered hull planks by alternating their wide and narrow ends.
• Touch
  The widest section of a tapered hull plank, or the angle of stern timbers at the counter.
• Water-line modelalso half-hull model, lift model
  A physical scale model of a hull built by stacking horizontal wooden boards.

Outlines the logistics of loading freight, managing ports, and coordinating commercial fleets.

• Agribulk
  Unpackaged agricultural commodities transported in large quantities.
• Berth
  A designated location at a port or anchorage where a vessel is secured.
• Bunker fuelalso bunkers, heavy fuel oil
  A heavy, viscous residual oil used to power large oceangoing vessels.
• Callalso port call
  A scheduled stop made by a commercial vessel at a port.
• Cloff
  A historic allowance or deduction made from the weight of bulk goods.
• Container port
  A specialized maritime facility equipped to handle intermodal shipping containers.
• Creelalso pot, trap
  A woven basket or trap used to catch or hold fish and crustaceans.
• Fingeralso finger pier
  A narrow pier projecting from a main dock to allow vessels to berth on both sides. Shop talk
• General cargoalso breakbulk cargo
  Goods shipped as individual units rather than in bulk or standard shipping containers.
• Inducement
  The minimum cargo volume required to justify a ship making an unscheduled port call.
• Molealso Breakwater
  A massive stone or concrete structure serving as a pier or breakwater.
• NVOCC
  A cargo consolidator that sells shipping space without owning the physical ships.
• Overlanded
  Describes cargo that arrives at a port in quantities exceeding what is listed on the ship's manifest.
• Sea link
  A scheduled, regular maritime transport route connecting two or more ports.
• Shake
  A single wooden stave from a disassembled barrel or cask used for cargo.
• Shipping company
  A commercial business that owns, operates, or manages a fleet of merchant vessels.
• Supercargo
  A representative of the cargo owner or charterer who travels on board to oversee the freight.
• Suttlealso suttle weight
  The weight of a cargo shipment after deducting the weight of its container or packaging.
• Time trade
  An agreement between shippers to swap scheduled cargo shipments.
• Tomalso Tomming
  To secure bulk cargo by filling voids under the hatch covers to prevent shifting. Shop talk
• Tramp tradealso tramp shipping
  The shipping of cargo on vessels that do not have a fixed schedule or published itinerary.

Defines the treaties, certificates, and legal codes that govern international shipping.

• Average
  A financial loss or damage to a ship or its cargo during a voyage.
• Bill of ladingalso B/L, BoL
  A legal document issued by a carrier detailing the type, quantity, and destination of cargo being carried.
• Book of lading
  A bound ledger used to record the details of all cargo loaded onto a vessel.
• C/Oalso Certificate of Origin
  Certificate of Origin, a document declaring the country where a cargo was produced.
• Clause
  To add a written exception or note to a shipping document regarding cargo condition.
• Demurrage
  A penalty fee charged when a ship is delayed in port beyond its allotted time.
• Flotsam and jetsam
  Wreckage and cargo floating in the sea, categorized by how it entered the water.
• IMDGalso IMDG Code
  The International Maritime Dangerous Goods code regulates the safe transport of hazardous materials by sea.
• IMO
  The International Maritime Organization is the United Nations agency responsible for regulating global shipping.
• MARPOLalso MARPOL 73/78
  The primary international treaty governing marine pollution from ships.
• MARPOL 73/78also MARPOL
  The formal designation for the international treaty preventing marine pollution.
• SRC
  The Short Range Certificate is a mandatory license for operating a marine VHF radio.
• Strickenalso struck
  Officially removed from a national naval register and decommissioned.
• Tret
  A historic allowance made to buyers for waste or refuse in a bulk cargo.
• Unentered
  Describing cargo or a vessel that has not yet cleared customs documentation at a port.
• Waterage
  A tariff or fee charged for the transportation of goods by water.

Lists the job titles, watch schedules, and informal waterfront talk used by working sailors.

• Able
  Fully qualified and certified to perform all deck duties.
• Able-bodiedalso AB, Able seaman
  A certified deck rating for an experienced merchant or naval mariner.
• Balls upalso cluster
  A completely botched job, disastrous situation, or severe operational mistake. Shop talk
• Buccaneer
  A historic privateer or pirate operating in the Caribbean and Pacific.
• Bug juice
  A brightly colored, highly sweetened powdered drink served on naval vessels. Shop talk
• Coltalso starter
  A short, knotted piece of rope historically used by petty officers to strike sailors. Shop talk
• Commodore
  A senior naval officer rank positioned above a captain and below a rear admiral.
• Crew
  The non-officer personnel who operate and maintain a vessel.
• Deckhandalso ordinary seaman, OS
  An unlicensed crew member responsible for manual labor and maintenance on a vessel.
• Flagalso flag officer, flagship
  An admiral or the flagship carrying an admiral, derived from the distinctive flag they fly.
• Grog
  A diluted rum ration historically issued to sailors. Shop talk
• Guinea pig
  An old naval slang term for an inexperienced or unrated seaman, often a junior midshipman. Shop talk
• Jaunty
  A traditional Royal Navy nickname for the Master-at-Arms. Shop talk
• Kidalso mess kid, mess tub
  A small wooden tub used to serve food rations to a mess of sailors.
• Liar
  A historic disciplinary nickname for a swabber assigned to clean the exterior of the ship. Shop talk
• Marine
  A military service member trained to operate on and from naval vessels.
• Matealso First officer, Chief mate
  A licensed deck officer who serves directly under the ship's master.
• Monkey
  A traditional wooden vessel or small cask used to distribute the rum ration. Shop talk
• Premieralso First lieutenant, Executive officer
  A slang term for the first lieutenant or second-in-command on a vessel. Shop talk
• Scran
  British naval and maritime slang for food or a cooked meal. Shop talk
• Skipalso Skipper
  A casual term of address for a skipper, the person in command of a small vessel or boat. Shop talk
• Steward
  A crew member responsible for provisions, dining, and passenger comfort.
• Tattoo
  A bugle call or drum signal sounded shortly before lights out to order the crew to their quarters.
• URL
  Unrestricted line officer, a naval officer eligible to command ships or fleets.
• Watch
  A designated shift of duty on a vessel or the specific group of crew members assigned to it.
• Watch in twoalso two-watch system
  A duty schedule where the crew is divided into two alternating shifts.