Nautical Terms,  Phrases & Trivia

Alpha	Bravo	Charlie	Delta
Echo	Foxtrot	Gulf	Hotel
India	Juliet	Kilo	Lima
Mike	November	Oscar	Papa
Quebec	Romeo	Sierra	Tango
Uniform	Victor	Whiskey	X-Ray
Yankee	Zulu	One	Two
Three	Four	Five	Six
Seven	Eight	Nine	Zero

Aiguillette
    This is the badge of office of a personal aide to a high-ranking officer, consisting of a shoulder device with a board and two loops ending in pegs and worn on the left shoulder.  It dates from the 16th century when the "Aide de Campe" carried the rope and pegs for a general's tent, or for tethering his horse.  Another variation states that the pegs were once indeed pencils to write down the general's orders.

    The old High German word for 'air' was 'luft', which was combined with the French term 'a', meaning 'go to'.  thus 'a - luft' became 'aloft' in old English.  It means 'to go into the air', or 'climb the mast'

Avast
    Contraction of two French words, 'Haud Vast', meaning to 'hold fast'.  In other words, hang on and stop what you're doing.

Aweigh
    When a ship raises anchor, the anchor is said to be aweigh as soon as it leaves the bottom. From the process of weighing anchor.

Aye Aye
    Aye is old English for "yes."  A bluejacket says, "Aye aye, sir," meaning, "I understand and I will obey."  It is based on the Latin word, 'Aio', meaning 'yes'

Balls Out
    Refers to an early design of engine governor, in which a pair of masses (balls) spun at an increasing rate as engine speed increased. Centrifugal acceleration threw the masses outward, so "balls out" refers to maximum possible engine speed.

Balls to the wall
    Maximum speed, or maximum effort.

Bamboozle
    In today's Navy, when you intentionally deceive someone, usually as a joke, you are said to have bamboozled them. The word was used in the days of sail also, but the intent was not hilarity. Bamboozle meant to deceive a passing vessel as to your ship's origin or nationality by flying an ensign other than your own - a common practice of pirates.

Batten
    A thin iron bar which is used to secure the tarpaulin cover over a cargo hatch or passageway.  "Batten down the hatches" usually means prepare for a storm or trouble.

Batten Down
    Make fast, secure, or shut. Originally, deck hatches did not have hinged, attached covers. Hatch covers were separate pieces which were laid over the hatch opening, then made fast with battens (pieces of timber).

Before the mast
    1) Literally, the position of the crew whose living quarters on board were in the forecastle (the section of a ship forward of the foremast). The term is also used more generally to describe seamen as compared with officers, in phrases such as "he sailed before the mast."

    2) Signing on a ship's crew as an ordinary seaman on a merchant vessel, or sometimes as an enlisted sailor on a naval ship.  It refers to the fact that the ship rapidly narrows towards the bow after the foremost mast, where it is impractical to stow cargo.  Quite naturally, especially aboard merchantmen, it is where the regular crew have their sleeping quarters.  Officers and passengers had theirs aft.  Popularized by Richard Dana's novel, "Two Years Before the Mast"

Bell-Bottom Trousers
    1) The Sailor's bell-bottom trousers, which came to epitomize '60s and early '70s fashion, are actually a practical item for Sailors living aboard ship. The wide, flared, legs are easy to roll up when swabbing a deck or wading through slightly flooded spaces.

    2) Commonly believed that the trouser were introduced in 1817 to permit men to roll them above the knee when washing down the decks, and to make it easier to remove them in a hurry when forced to abandon ship or when washed overboard. The trousers may be used as a life preserver by knotting the legs.

Berth
    1) A built-in bed or bunk.
    2) A location in a port where a vessel can be moored, often indicated by a code or name.
    3) A position, place, office or job in a ship.

Big Chicken Dinner
    Bad Conduct Discharge. In many ways, equivalent to a felony conviction.

Bilge
    1) The area below the deck gratings in the lowest spaces of the ship, where things, especially liquids, tend to collect.

    2) To fail or do poorly. "Poor Smitty bilged the quiz."

    3) To name a classmate or shipmate involved in wrongdoing, or to identify a mistake made by someone else.

    4) Old English in origin.  A variation of 'bulge'.  Where the ship 'bulged' most was at its bottom.  There, sea water seeping in through the bottom planks became stagnant and foul, which was mixed by dripping water and 'slops' from the upper decks.  Pumping out the bilges was a smelly, very disagreeable chore.  The term became used to describe anything unpleasant or unbelievable.

Bilge Diving
    Working in the bilges of a ship, or cleaning same.

Bilge rat
    Someone who works in the engineering spaces.

Binnacle List
    Many novice Sailors, confusing the words "binnacle" and "barnacle," have wondered what their illnesses had to do with crusty growths found on the hull of a ship. Their confusion is understandable.
    Binnacle is defined as the stand or housing for the ship's compass located on the bridge. The term binnacle list, in lieu of sick list, originated years ago when, in the eighteenth century (and probably before), ships' corpsmen used to place a list of the sick on the binnacle each morning to inform the Captain about the crew's health. After long practice, it came to be called the Binnacle List.

Bitter End, The
    1) As any able-bodied seaman can tell you, a turn of a line around a bitt, those wooden or iron posts sticking through a ship's deck, is called a bitter. Thus the last of the line secured to the bitts is known as the bitter end. Nautical usage has somewhat expanded the original definition in that today the end of any line, secured to bitts or not, is called a bitter end.
    The landlubbing phrases "stick to the bitter end" and "faithful to the bitter end" are derivations of the nautical term and refer to anyone who insists on adhering to a course of action without regard to consequences.

    2) From the old Norse word "bitt" or beam.  A pair of posts fixed on the deck of a ship for securing lines.  "Bitter" became a term for a single turn of a cable around the bitts, which was usually the very end of the rope.  It became applied to a situation when a person was at the last extremity or very end of his resources. A parallel definition comes from the end of a rope that sometimes hangs over the side of a ship and is closest to the ocean.  It's very end is "salty" or "bitter" since it often trails in the water.

Bluejacket
    The first uniform that was ever officially sanctioned for sailors in the Royal Navy was a short blue jacket open in the front.  A generic name for a Navy enlisted person.

Boatswain & Coxswain
    1) As required by 17th Century law, British ships-of-war carried three smaller boats, the boat, the cock-boat, and the skiff. The boat - or gig - was usually used by the Captain to go ashore and was the larger of the three. The cock-boat was a very small rowboat used as the ship's tender. The skiff was a lightweight all-purpose vessel. The suffix "swain" means keeper, thus the keepers of the boat, cock, and skiff were called boatswain and cockswain (or coxswain). 

    2) A coxswain or cockswain was at first the swain (boy servant) in charge of the small cock or cockboat that was kept aboard for the ship's captain and which was used to row him to and from the ship. The term has been in use in England dating back to at least 1463. With the passing of time the coxswain became the helmsman of any boat, regardless of size.

    3) Another reference defines “Swain” or Swein” as Anglo-Saxon for servant. Boatswain refers to the warrant or petty officer in charge of the deck crew.

    4) A Boatswain's Mate is often called either "Bo'sun's Mate", "Bo'sun" or "Boats" for short... and "Deck Ape" to annoy.

    5) A variation of Boatswain is "Bo'sun"  Considered Medieval English in origin.  "Boot" (boat) + "Swain (servant, or boy).  A petty officer on a merchant ship having charge of hull maintenance and related work.

Boatswain's Pipe
    1) No self-respecting boatswain's mate would dare admit he couldn't blow his pipe in a manner above reproach. This pipe, which is the emblem of the boatswain and his mates, has an ancient and interesting history. On the ancient row-galleys, the boatswain used his pipe to t;call the stroke;. Later because its shrill tune could be heard above most of the activity on board, it was used to signal various happenings such as knock-off and the boarding of officials. So essential was this signaling device to the well-being of the ship, that it became a badge of office and honor in the British and American Navy of the sailing ships.

    2) One of the oldest and most distinctive pieces of nautical equipment, the pipe or flute was used in Greece and Rome to keep the stroke of galley slaves.  The pipe was used in the Crusades to call English cross bowmen on deck for attack.  In time, the pipe came to be used as a badge of office by commanders.  The whistle was used for salutes to distinguished persons as well as to pass orders.
    A 1645 publication detailing honors for an admiral, orders; "The ship's barge to be sent to fetch the visitor having the cockson with his silver whistle in the stern... Upon the near approach of the barge the noise of the trumpets are to sound and so to hold on until the barge comes within less than musket shot, at that time the trumpets are to cease and all such as carry whistles are to whistle a welcome three several times."
    The parts of the pipe are the buoy, gun, keel and shackle.

Boot
    Rookie or newbie, as in ‘boot Ensign.’ Originated in the habit of referring to a new man as ‘bootcamp,’ rather than by name.

Boot camp
    1) During the Spanish-American War, Sailors wore leggings called boots, which came to mean a Navy (or Marine) recruit. These recruits trained in "boot" camps.

    2) A training area for new recruits just entering the Navy.  This is said to have come from the days just after the Civil War.  At the time, experienced, or "true" sailors, did much of their work barefoot, especially when scrubbing the decks.  New recruits from the Midwest did not like doing it in this fashion, and so would go ashore as soon as possible to buy a pair of rubber boots to protect their feet. 

Bravo Zulu (also "BZ")
    The term originates from the Allied Signals Book (ATP 1), which in the aggregate is for official use only. Signals are sent as letters and/or numbers, which have meanings by themselves sometimes or in certain combinations. A single table in ATP 1 is called "governing groups," that is, the entire signal that follows the governing group is to be performed according to the "governor." The letter "B" indicates this table, and the second letter (A through Z) gives more specific information. For example, "BA" might mean "You have permission to . . . (do whatever the rest of the flashing light, flag hoist or radio transmission says) "BZ" happens to be the last item in the governing groups table. It means "well done"

Brass Monkey
    The old days of fighting sail employed boys as 'powder monkeys' to bring up cannon balls and bags of gunpowder from the ship's magazines during a battle.  Next to the gun, close towards its muzzle end, rested a device known as a 'brass monkey', which consisted of 3 bowls made of brass and brazed or welded together. Its purpose was to hold 3 cannon balls available for instant use as a reload during a battle, or what we would now call ready ammunition.

(Note: There is an old saying, "Cold enough to freeze the balls off of a brass monkey." which sounds obscene, but actually has a rather mundane origin.  Since brass contracts under cold temperatures, an extremely cold night would cause the brass bowls to shrink enough to actually pop out any iron cannon balls they contained.  Sailors who found these cannon balls rolling about the deck now knew just how cold things could get).

Breech
    Middle English - from 'broc' or leg-covering.  The plural form was 'breeches' or pants, usually referring to the critical area of the body where the pants covered.  It was soon used when referring to the bottom half of any object, such as a cask, beam, gun, or man.

Bridge
    As ships passed to steam and orders could be given by remote methods such as the engine-order telegraph, a small control deck with an enclosed pilot house was constructed above the main deck of the ship in front of the funnel, usually reaching from side to side and thus 'bridging' the main deck.  It became the term used to describe the place where the Captain steered the ship from and gave his orders.

Brig
    1) Lord Nelson used a brig (type of ship) for removing prisoners from his ships, hence prisons at sea became known as brigs.

    2) One of the smaller but more versatile warships of the sailing era was the two-masted 'brigantine' (French word for 'Bandit'), or 'brig' as it was abbreviated by the Royal Navy.  Small, fast, and well-armed for its size, it served as a scout for the bigger ships, patrol vessel, convoy escort, and errand boy for the fleet.  In the last case, it would often be used to run mail, fresh provisions, spare parts, and personnel back and forth to England. Admiral Nelson found them very handy to transport prisoners of war.  So many were his victories and so great was his success that for a period of time nearly every brig arriving in England had prisoners aboard, and so many were modified as sea-going jails for this express purpose. With every ship having at least one or two troublesome crewmen as well as an occasional prisoner of war, it was customary to put him in the ships own "brig" for a spell.

Brightwork
    Brightwork originally referred to polished metal objects, and bright woodwork to wood which was kept scraped and scrubbed, especially topside. Bright it should be and work it is.

Broach
    Middle English - 'brocus', or 'projecting'. Originally used to describe the piercing of a cask to open it.  The term was eventually used to describe the opening of a new subject in conversation.  It was also used to describe when a ship is turned sideways to a wave, allowing it to break over for the length of the hull.  This usually means the ship is in extremis and is probably sinking or about to break up.  The possible origins of this particular term is from the action of the masts thrusting through the on-coming waves while the ship is full over on its side.

Bug juice
    A substance similar in appearance to Kool-Aid which is served as a beverage aboard USN ships. Its color has no bearing on its flavor. Largely composed of ascorbic acid. Used extensively as an all-purpose cleaner/stripper for bulkheads, decks, brass fire nozzles, and pipes.

Bulkhead
    Upright partition dividing the interior of a ship into compartments.

Bully Boy
    Bully boys, a term prominent in Navy chanties and poems, means in its strictest sense, "beef eating Sailors." Sailors of the Colonial Navy had a daily menu of an amazingly elastic substance called bully beef, actually beef jerky. The term appeared so frequently on the messdeck that it naturally lent its name to the sailors who had to eat it. As an indication of the beef's texture and chewability, it was also called "salt junk," alluding to the rope yarn used for caulking the ship's seams.

Bullnose
    An opening at the very tip of the bow through which lines for tying up to a dock were run. When in heavy seas and the bow buried itself itself in green water, the bullnose produces quite remarkable jets of water.

Bumboat
    Small boats were often used to bring out provisions and commodities while the ship was off shore or anchored in a busy port.  These were hoisted aboard and lowered by "booms" (Old High German: 'buom' for 'tree'), which were the long spars used to extend the foot of the sail.  This term became applied to any small boat that visited a ship while in port, since they often carried small goods to sell to the crewmen.

Buy The Farm
    Killed in action or by accident while on duty.  From World War I onwards, American servicemen were offered a government insurance policy, which was often large enough to pay off the family farm.

By and Large
    1) Colloquial term meaning ‘For the most part.’ Origin of the term seems to be that a ship was considered particularly seaworthy if it could sail both ‘by’ (close to the wind) and ‘large’ (broad to or before the wind).

    2) A term derived from two sailing terms combined:  "By the wind" (Close-hauled), and "Sailing Large" (Running Free).  The term, 'at large', also comes from this usage.

Carry On
    In the days of sail, the Officer of the Deck kept a weather eye constantly on the slightest change in wind, so sails could be reefed or added as necessary to ensure the fastest headway. Whenever a good breeze came along, the order to "carry on" would be given. It meant to hoist every bit of canvas the yards could carry. Pity the poor Sailor whose weather eye failed him and the ship was caught partially reefed when a good breeze arrived.
    Through the centuries the term's connotation has changed somewhat. Today, the Bluejackets Manual defines "carry on" as an order to resume work - work not so grueling as two centuries ago.

Channel Fever
    Anxious to get home, or reach port.

Charge Books
    1) The use of the charge book dates back to World War II.  Due to losses incurred in combat, Commanding Officers were authorized to advance deserving, qualified personnel to Chief Petty Officer.  Prior to moving into the Chief Petty Officer quarters, Commanding Officers directed the selectee to go to each chief aboard and obtain a list of their duties and responsibilities, and get their signatures.  This way, the prospective chief was knowledgeable about the members of the mess, and where to go for assistance to solve problems.  With each chief's duties and responsibilities entered into the charge book along with the chief's signature, it was then presented to the Commanding Officer.  When the Commanding Officer was satisfied that his selectee was knowledgable about the mess, he would advance him at quarters in front of ship's company.

    2) During World War II, Commanding Officers were authorized to advance and promote deserving and qualified sailors to the highest enlisted rank of Chief Petty Officer. The determination of "deserving and qualified" could be difficult for the CO. The situation also presented challenges to the Sailor who aspired to attain a Chief rating. From these dilemmas sprang the original charge books. Chiefs began to direct PO1's to prepare themselves to assume the additional responsibilities. Ship's professional libraries were nonexistent or poorly stocked and much had to be learned directly from conversations with the Chiefs themselves and taken down to be studied later. In addition to the technical aspects of the various ratings, CPO's also talked to the PO1's about leadership, accountability, supporting the chain of command, and other subject matter often using personal experiences to illustrate how something should (or should not) be done. The collection of notes and study material eventually came to be called a "Charge Book" perhaps because those who kept them were their "Charges" (entrusted to their care) for professional development or perhaps because the entries included "Charges" (authoritative instructions or tasking of a directive nature).

Charlie Noble
    Charlie Noble is an "it," not a "he." A British merchant service captain, Charles Noble, is said to be responsible for the origin, about 1850, of this nickname for the galley smokestack. It seems that Captain Noble, discovering that the stack of his ship's galley was made of copper, ordered that it be kept bright. The ship's crew then started referring to the stack as the "Charley Noble."

Charlie Oscar
    Commanding Officer.

Chart
    From the Latin word 'charta', or the Greek, 'charte', which was a kind of papyrus.  In middle English, the chart or maps were known as 'sea cards'.

Cheng
    CHief ENGineer. Pronounced 'chang'.

Chevrons

    Chevron is a French word meaning rafter or roof, which is what a chevron looks like; two straight lines meeting at an angle just as rafters do in a roof. It has been an honourable ordinarie in heraldry since at least the Twelfth Century. Ordinaries are simple straight line forms that seem to have originated in the wood or iron bars used to fasten together or strengthen portions of shields. Other ordinaries include the cross, the diagonal cross or "x," the triangle, the "y," and horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines. The chevron was a basic part of the colorful and complicated science of heraldry. It appeared on the shields and coats-of-arms of knights, barons and kings.
    Chevrons were thus easily recognized symbols of honor. That might by why French soldiers started wearing cloth chevrons with the points up on their coat sleeves in 1777 as length of service and good conduct badges. Some British units also used them to show length of service. In 1803 the British began using chevrons with the points down as rank insignia. Sergeants wore three and Corporals two. Perhaps they wore them with the points down to avoid confusion with the earlier length of service chevrons worn with the points up. Some British units also used chevrons of gold lace as officers' rank insignia. British and French soldiers who served in our Revolutionary War wore chevrons as did some American soldiers. In 1782 General George Washington ordered that enlisted men who had served for three years "with bravery, fidelity and good conduct" wear as a badge of honor "a narrow piece of white cloth, of angular form" on the left sleeve of the uniform coat.
    In 1817 Sylvanus Thayer, the superintendent of the U.S. Military Academy, West Point, used chevrons to show cadet rank. From there they spread to the rest of the Army and Marine Corps. From 1820 to 1830 Marine Captains wore three chevrons of gold lace with points down on each sleeve above the elbows of their dress uniforms. Lieutenants wore one or two gold lace chevrons depending on whether they were staff or command officers. Marine Noncommissioned Officers started wearing cloth chevrons with the points up as rank insignia in 1836. They had been wearing them for three years as length of service badges. In 1859 they began wearing chevrons in about the same patterns they do today.
    Starting in 1820 Army company grade officers and Sergeants wore one chevron with the point up on each arm. The officers' chevrons were of gold or silver lace, depending on the wearer's branch of service. Captains wore their chevrons above the elbow while Lieutenants wore theirs below. Sergeant Majors and Quartermaster Sergeants wore worsted braid chevrons above the elbow while other Sergeants and Senior Musicians wore theirs below. Corporals wore one chevron on the right sleeve above the elbow. By 1833 the Army and Marine company grade officers had stopped wearing chevrons and returned to epaulettes as rank insignia. Sergeants of the Army dragoons then began wearing three chevrons with points down and Corporals two. All other NCOs wore cloth epaulettes to show their rank. From 1847 to 1851 some Army NCOs wore chevrons with the points up on their fatigue uniform jackets but still used cloth epaulettes on their dress uniforms. After 1851 all Army NCOs wore chevrons with points down until 1902 when the Army turned the points up and adopted the patterns used today, two chevrons for Corporals, three for Sergeants and combinations of arcs and other devices beneath the chevrons for higher grades of Sergeants.
    The stripes worn by Air Force members date from 1948. The basic design was one of several presented to 150 NCOs at Bolling Air Force Base, Washington D.C., in late 1947 or early 1948. Some 55 percent of the NCOs preferred that design so on March 9, 1948, General Hoyt S. Vandenberg, then the Air Force Vice Chief of Staff, accepted their choice and approved the design. Naturally, it took some time to obtain and distribute the new stripes so it could have been a year or more before all Air Force members got them.
    Whoever designed the stripes might have been trying to combine the shoulder patch worn by members of the Army Air Forces during World War II and the insignia used on aircraft. The patch featured wings with a pierced star in the center while the aircraft insignia was a star with two bars. The stripes might be the bars from the aircraft insignia slanted gracefully upward to suggest wings. The silver grey color contrasts with the blue uniform and might suggest clouds against blue sky.
    Most enlisted service members wear chevrons or stripes to show their ranks. The exceptions are the lowest three grades of Navy and Coast Guard Seamen and the Army Specialists. The Seamen wear one, two or three diagonal stripes or "hashmarks" on their sleeves. These stripes first appeared on the cuffs of sailors' jumpers in 1886. Petty Officers and Seamen First Class wore three stripes, Seamen Second Class two stripes and Seamen Third Class one stripe. Shortly after World War II the Navy moved the stripes to its Seamen's upper arms, as did the Coast Guard. Army Specialists wear an insignia that combines a spread eagle and, depending on the pay grade, arcs -- sometimes called "bird umbrellas." The eagle and arcs are mounted on a patch that suggests inverted chevrons. The badge appeared in 1955 as part of an effort to differentiate between the Army's technical or support specialists who were not NCOs and the NCOs.

Chewing the Fat
    "God made the vittles, but the devil made the cook," was a popular saying used by seafaring men in the last century when salted beef was staple diet aboard ship. This tough cured beef, suitable only for long voyages when nothing else was as cheap or would keep as well, required prolonged chewing to make it edible. Men often chewed one chunk for hours, just as if it were chewing gum and referred to this practice as "chewing the fat".

Chit
    One tradition carried on in the Navy is the use of the word "chit." It is a carry over from the days when Hindu traders used slips of paper called "citthi" for money, so they wouldn't have to carry heavy bags of gold and silver. British sailors shortened the word to chit and applied it to their mess vouchers.
    Its most outstanding use in the Navy today is for drawing pay and a form used for requesting leave and liberty, and special requests. But the term is currently applied to almost any piece of paper from a pass to an official letter requesting some privilege.

Church Pennant
    The Church Pennant is the only flag ever flown over the National Ensign at the same point of hoist. It is displayed during church services conducted by a Chaplain, both ashore and afloat.

Cinderella Liberty
    Liberty where one must be back aboard by midnight.

Clean Bill of Health
    This widely used term has its origins in the document issued to a ship showing that the port it sailed from suffered from no epidemic or infection at the time of departure.

Clipper
    Comes from the old English word 'clip', meaning to run, or fly swiftly.

Close Quarters
    Sometimes also referred to as 'closed quarters' as well.  The quarters aboard ship, especially those for officers and passengers, had wooden partitions or bulkheads dividing them.  Also, many ships had pre-assembled partitions which could further sub-divide the interior, according to the cargo or passenger requirements.  In case of enemy action, these could be quickly assembled, pierced by loopholes, and then be used by firearms, pikes and cutlasses to fight through.  The defenders would thus be well-protected and dangerous opponents to anyone who went below decks.  It was a very effective means of fighting off boarders

Cockbilling Yards
    Yards were once "cockbilled" and rigging was slacked off to show grief. The half-masting of colors is in reality a survival of the days when a slovenly appearance chacterized mourning.

"Cold Enough to Freeze The Balls Off A Brass Monkey"
    This term has nothing to do with testicles or primates, and a good deal of debate remains to this day regarding the origin of the phrase. In the days of smoothbore cannon, particularly ashore, ready-use cannon balls were stored near the guns. The balls were stacked in a ‘monkey,’ a metal frame which was laid on the deck to help contain the bottom layer of cannon balls. Monkeys were typically made of brass. In extremely cold temperatures, the brass monkey shrank more than the iron cannon balls, and the stack of balls would collapse. The root of the debate is whether such an event is possible at all, though the phrase appears to be more a traditional exaggeration than an engineering possibility.
    Snopes has dismissed this explaination at their website - http://www.snopes.com/spoons/fracture/brass.htm

Con, or Conn
    Old English in origin, first used in the present sense to guide a ship into harbor about 1510. Some scholars claim it has a close affinity to the word, 'cunning'

Crossing the Line
    The boisterous ceremonies of "crossing the line" are ancient and their derivation is lost.  It is well known that ceremonies took place long ago when the ship crossed the thirtieth parallel, and also when going through the Straits of Gibraltar.  Early ceremonies were rough and to a great extent supposed to try the crew to determine whether or not the novices on their first cruise could endure the hardships of life at sea.  The custom then, as at present, is primarily a crew's party.
    The Vikings were reported at an early date to carry out these ceremonies on crossing certain parallels.  It is highly probable that the present day ceremony was passed on to the Anglo-Saxons, and Normans from the Vikings.  As at earlier times, ceremonies of propitiation are carried on to appease Neptune, the mythological god of the seas.  Those who have crossed the line, the equator, are called shellbacks.  These Sons of Neptune compose the cast for the present day ceremonies.
    Bluejackets treasure the certificate which testifies that "in Latitude 00-00 and Longitude xx-xx," and usually addressed to all Mermaids, Sea Serpents, Whales, Sharks, Porpoises, Dolphins, Skates, Eels, Suckers, Lobsters, Crabs, Pollywogs and other living things of the sea," __(name)__ has been found worthy to be numbered as one of our trust shellback, has been gathered to our fold and duly initiated into the solemn mysteries of the ancient order of the deep."
    Members of Neptunus Rex's party usually include Davy Jones, Neptune's first assistant, Her Highness Amphitrite, the Royal Scribe, the Royal Doctor, the Royal Dentist, The Royal Baby,  The Royal Navigator, The Royal Chaplain, Judges, Attorneys, Barbers and other names that suit the party.  The uninitiated are pollywogs or worse, landlubbers.

Crow's Nest
    The raven, or crow, was an essential part of the Vikings' navigation equipment. These land-lubbing birds were carried on aboard to help the ship's navigator determine where the closest land lay when weather prevented sighting the shore. In cases of poor visibility, a crow was released and the navigator plotted a course corresponding to the bird's flight path because the crow invariably headed towards land.
    The Norsemen carried the birds in a cage secured to the top of the mast. Later on, as ships grew and the lookout stood his watch in a tub located high on the main mast, the name "crow's nest" was given to this tub. While today's Navy still uses lookouts in addition to radars, etc., the crow's nest is a thing of the past.

Cumshaw
    1) Procurement of needed material outside the supply chain, usually by swapping, barter, or mutual backscratching. Often involves coffee or other food items. Officially frowned upon, but a widespread practice.

    2) Something procured outside official channels and without official payment.  Word derived from beggars of Amoy, China, who said "kam sia" meaning "grateful -thanks."  The Navy term usually relates to unauthorized work done for a ship or station usually obtained by bartering.  "The shipyard welders added the brackets in exchange for five pounds of coffee."  A "cumshaw artist" is one who is adapt at getting projects done for free or by bartering.

Cup of Joe
    1) Josephus Daniels (18 May 1862-15 January 1948) was appointed Secretary of the Navy by President Woodrow Wilson in 1913. Among his reforms of the Navy were inaugurating the practice of making 100 Sailors from the Fleet eligible for entrance into the Naval Academy, the introduction of women into the service, and the abolishment of the officers' wine mess. From that time on, the strongest drink aboard Navy ships could only be coffee and over the years, a cup of coffee became known as "a cup of Joe".

    2) How American coffee came to be called joe is not well documented, but the leading theory connects it to the once-popular song Old Black Joe written by Stephen Collins Foster (author of Oh! Susannah and Camptown Races) in 1860. The name joe appears to have been primarily used in the military, and particularly the navy, during the first half of the twentieth century. The slang was popular enough to be included in the Reserve Officer's Manual of 1931 along with java (named after the coffee bean) and jamoke (a combination of the words java and mocha, pronounced ja-moh-kee). Bayler & Carnes commented on the military's devotion to its joe in 1943: "Coffee is the marine's best friend and the Corps might well adopt the good old "joe-pot" for its emblem" (Wake I.).

Cut and Run
    1) To leave quickly, from the practice of cutting a ship’s moorings in a hasty departure.

    2) A common form of early sea warfare was sneaking into an enemy harbor at night and stealing the anchored ships or boats targeted by cutting their anchor lines and sailing away on the out-going, or 'running' tide.  This soon became used to describe any action or plan requiring speed and urgency. It also applied to an emergency action if an anchored ship was caught by surprise by a superior enemy force.

Cut of His Jib
    1) In the days of sailing ships, nationality and rigs could often be distinguished by their jibs. A Spanish ship, for example, had a small jib or none at all. Large French ships often had two jibs and English ships normally had only one.
    From ships, the phrase was extended to apply to men. The nose, like the jib of a ship arriving in harbor, is the first part of the person to arrive at a designated place. Figuratively, it implies the first impression one makes on another person.

    2) The jib referred to the triangular sail that extended from the foremast to the bowsprit.  It was used to take advantage of cross-winds to make the ship turn faster than with just its rudder. Many navies had their own, distinctive style of making these jibs, and they could be recognized while a good distance away.  Furthermore, sailors could tell by observing the angle, or 'cut'  of another ship's jib against the horizon whether it was being handled smartly or in a clumsy fashion.  More subtly, much could be told about a ship's behavior in this fashion.  If the observed vessel used its jib to turn swiftly and  aggressively towards them, it was probably hostile.  If it came towards them gradually and in a leisurely fashion, then it was friendly and perhaps wanted a chat or an impromptu trading session. However, if it turned suddenly away, then it was afraid of them or had something to hide.  This term was soon applied by observant sailors to other people they encountered.

Cutlass
    Short saber with a cut and thrust blade and a large hand guard. Issued to enlisted men as a sidearm and maintained in ships armories until the beginning of WWII. The weapons was officially declared obsolete in 1949. The Cutlass was considered an organizational issue item, but was never considered to be a part of the enlisted uniform.

Davit
    Not used until 1811; which is the term for the tackle on the main and foremost shrouds for hoisting heavy boats aboard ship.  -First called 'davitt', and by Captain John Smith, 'The David's End', in 1626.  It itself is derived from 'Daviet', or 'David'; since it was the custom in those days to give proper names to implements, such as 'billy', or 'jack'.  A few scholars have theorized that the true origin is related to the Biblical story of King David's son, Absalom, who was caught hanging from a tree branch by his hair.

Davy Jones (and His Locker )
    1) American Sailors would rather not talk about Davy Jones and his infamous locker. They are ready enough to refer to him and his dwelling place, but just leave him an indefinite, unbodied charachter who keeps to his place at the bottom of the sea. Pressed, they will profess that they do not know what he looks like, his locker is to them something like an ordinary sea chest or coffin, always open to catch any sailor unfortunate enough to find himself in the sea. Some English sailors incline to the belief that his name is a corruption of Duffer Jones, a clumsy fellow who frequently found himself overboard. The only time Davy comes to life is in the ceremony of crossing the line. Then his is usually impersonalted by the smallest sailor on board, given a hump, horns and a tail, and his features made as ugly as possible. He is swinish, dressed in rags and seaweed, and shambles along in the wake of the sea king, neptune, playing evil tricks upon his fellow sailors. Old sailors, rather than speak of the devil, called him Deva, Davy or Taffy, the thief of the evil spirit; and Jones is from Jonah, whose locker was the whale's belly. Jonah was often called Jonas, and as Davy Jones, the enemy of all living sailors, he has become the mariners' evil angel. To be cast into the sea and sink is to fall into his locker and have the lid popped down on one. It is generally agreed that the Christian sailor's body goes to Davy Jones's locker, but his soul, if he is a proper sailorman, goes to Fiddlers' Green. From the book A Sailor's Treasury by Frank Shay, Copyright 1951.
    2) Among old-time sailors, he is the spirit of the ocean, and usually depicted as a sea devil.  According to sailors' mythology, he is the fiend that presides over all the evil spirits of the deep. Thus also, 'Davy Jones' Locker' referred to the bottom of the sea, which is the final resting place of sunken ships, dead sailors, and/or any other item lost or washed overboard.

Dead Horse
    1) When a Sailor pays off a debt to the command (advance pay, overpayments, etc...) they say they've paid off a Dead Horse. The saying comes from a tradition of British sailors. British seamen, apt to be ashore and unemployed for considerable periods of time between voyages, generally preferred to live in boarding houses near the piers while waiting for sailing ships to take on crews.
    During these periods of unrestricted liberty, many ran out of money, so innkeepers carried them on credit until hired out for another voyage. When a seaman was booked on a ship, he was customarily advanced a month's wages, if needed, to pay off his boarding house debt. Then, while paying back the ship's master, he worked for nothing but "salt horse" the first several weeks aboard.
    Salt horse was the staple diet of early sailors and it wasn't exactly tasty cuisine. Consisting of a low quality beef that had been heavily salted, the salt horse was tough to chew and even harder to digest. When the debt had been repaid, the salt horse was said to be dead and it was a time for great celebration among the crew. Usually, an effigy of a horse was constructed from odds and ends, set afire and then cast afloat to the cheers and hilarity of the ex-debtors.

    2 ) Merchant sailors were sometimes unemployed for long periods of time between voyages, and often lived in boarding houses near the piers while waiting for ships to come in and take on fresh crews.  In such circumstances, many of them ran out of money, and so the innkeepers carried them on credit until they were hired for another voyage.  When a sailor was booked on a ship, he was customarily advanced a month's wages, if needed, to pay off his boarding house debt.  Once aboard ship, he worked for nothing but "salt horse" the first several weeks or so.  Salt horse was the staple diet of early sailors and not tasty fare.  Consisting of heavily salted, low quality beef, it was stringy and tough to chew.  When the debt had been repaid, then the salt horse was said to be 'dead', for now the sailor could buy better food from the ship's stores, or bribe the cook or purser.  This was a time for celebration among the crew.  Usually, an effigy of a horse was constructed of shipboard odds and ends, set afire, and then thrown overboard amidst cheers and laughter.  Another definition that is related to the first, is the fact that the "Horse Latitudes" lay towards the southern climates (Tropic of Cancer) near the Equator, which was roughly about a month's sail from England and Europe.  Because of the doldrums (Lack of wind) in the area, ships were often becalmed for many days or weeks at a time, causing a water shortage.  Livestock, especially horses, died first, or were simply killed and thrown overboard to save water. Their carcasses were often sighted by other ships traveling in this area, and so the region acquired that name.  A sailor who had a debt to work off rejoiced at the sight of one of these floating bodies, knowing that he would soon be getting wages.  In today's Navy, a "dead horse" refers to a debt to the government for advance pay.

Deep Six
    1) Originally, the call of the leadsman signifying that the water is more than 6 fathoms deep, but less than seven.

    2) Euphemism for throwing something overboard. Also seen as 'splash', 'float check', 'float test'.

    3) To deliberately throw something overboard in deep water to be lost for good.  It comes from the fact that deep water is measured in "fathoms", or measurements of six feet.  The depth of the average grave is also six feet

Derrick
    Named after Thomas Derrick, a famous executioner at the time of Queen Elizabeth.  He was an ingenious hangman who devised a beam with a topping lift and pulleys for his hangings, instead of the old-fashioned rope over the beam method.

Devil to pay
    1) Today the expression "devil to pay" is used primarily to describe having an unpleasant result from some action that has been taken, as in someone has done something they shouldn't have and, as a result, "there will be the devil to pay." Originally, this expression described one of the unpleasant tasks aboard a wooden ship.   The "devil" was the wooden ship's longest seam in the hull. Caulking was done with "pay" or pitch (a kind of tar). The task of "paying the devil" (caulking the longest seam) by squatting in the bilges was despised by every seaman.

    2) Originally, the saying was "The devil to pay and no pitch hot." In the old wooden-hulled ships, ‘devil’ seams joined the external hull timbers with the deck planking; there are also references to a devil seam back aft, where the hull timbers join at the rudder post. Seams were caulked, or sealed, by jamming oakum fiber into the gaps, then smearing the seam with melted pitch or tar. If one of these seams worked open in rough weather, a great deal of water could be shipped before it was repaired. This term is probably the origin of the term ‘hell to pay.’

Dipping the Ensign
    A Merchant vessel used to be required to heave and clew up all her canvass when approached by a warship on the high seas, so as to indicate her willingness to be searched. Delays resulted, and eventually, dipping the flag was authorized as a time-saving substitute.
Today U. S. Naval ships return the salutes dip for dip, except those rendered by ships under flags not recognized by the U. S.

Ditty Bags
    Ditty bog (or box) was originally called ditto bag because it contained at least two of everything - two needles, two spools of thread, two buttons, etc. With the passing of years, the 'ditto' was dropped in favor of ditty and remains so today. Before WW I, the Navy issued ditty boxes made of wood and styled after foot lockers. These carried the personal gear and some clothes of the sailor. Today the ditty bag is still issued to recruits and contains a sewing kit, toiletry articles and personal items such as writing paper and pens.

Dogwatch
    1) A dogwatch at sea is the period between 1600-1800, the first dogwatch, or the period between 1800-2000, the second dog watch. The watches aboard ships are:

12:00 to 16:00 - Afternoon watch
16:00 to 18:00 - First dogwatch
18:00 to 20:00 - Second dogwatch
20:00 to 00:00 - First night watch
00:00 to 04:00 - Middle watch or mid watch
04:00 to 08:00 - Morning watch
08:00 to 12:00 - Forenoon watch

    2) Dog Watch is the name given to the 1600-1800 and the 1800-2000 watches aboard a ship. The 1600-2000 four-hour watch was originally split even to prevent men from always having to stand the same watches daily. As a result, Sailors dodge the same daily routine, hence they are dodging the watch or standing the dodge watch. In its corrupted form, dodge became dog and the procedure is referred as "dogging the watch" or standing the "dog watch."

Doughnut (or, Donut)
    When first invented, it was a ring of bread dough deep-fried in fat and flavored with sugar, honey, or molasses.  A popular treat in early American history, both out West and at sea.  Legend has it that an early New England sea captain by the name of Hansen Gregory designed them so that helmsmen on watch could slip them over the spokes of the ship's wheel.   Thus making them handy for eating or allowing them to cool if they were freshly made

Down a Peg or Two
    During the days of sail, flags had their heights regulated by a series of pegs at the base of the mast where their hoisting ropes were secured.  An admiral had the right to fly his own personal flag, which was placed at the highest point of the mast to signify his rank and prestige to all within view.  However, if an admiral of higher rank appeared on the scene, then his flag had to be taken down by a peg or two, according to his lower seniority.  It became a very popular means to describe how someone's pride or ego could be dealt with.

Down-Easterner
    A unique nick-name for someone who comes from the state of Maine in New England.  Derived from the early colonial days of North America, when what is now Maine was Officially part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony.

    Since there were few roads and no railroads, travel between Boston and the Maine area was by sea.  Due to the local prevailing winds, and the northward flow of the Gulf Stream, a ship sailing away from Boston to Maine was said to be going "Down Wind.", or, "Down" to Maine.  Since Maine actually projects Eastward further than Boston and Cape Cod, most traffic was sailing North and Eastwards, and so the two terms were combined.  Eventually, it came to denote anyone who lived at that destination.

Down the Scuppers
    A 'scupper' was an opening cut through the waterway and bulwarks of a ship so that water falling on deck could wash through and overboard. Careless sailors who dropped their pipes, coins, or other small but valuable objects were very apt to lose them for good right before their eyes.  This saying soon became applied to any hopeful chance or opportunity lost.

Dress Ship
    Commissioned ships are "full-dressed" on Washington's Birthday and Independence Day, and "dressed" on other national holidays. When a ship is dressed, the national ensign is flown from the flagstaff and usually from each masthead. When a ship is full-dressed, in addition to the ensigns, a "rainbow" of signal flags is displayed from bow to stern over the mastheads, or as nearly so as the construction of the ships permits. Ships not under way are dressed from 08:00 to sunset; ships under way do not dress until they come to anchor during that period.

Drumhead / Drumhead Courts-Martial
    On board the larger sailing ships, the head-post of the huge rudder was covered by a large, circular construction made of wood planking.  Because of its shape, it was known as the 'drumhead', and doubled as a dining table and convient working surface for the ship's officers, since it was located aft in their berthing area.  It also became the center-point of formal inquiries and/or court-martial trials.

    A name given to a Sailor's personal effects. Also spelled duffel, it referred to his principal clothing as well as to the seabag in which he carried and stowed it. The term comes from the Flemish town of Duffel near Antwerp, and denotes a rough woolen cloth made there.

Dungarees
    1) Webster defines dungaree as "a coarse kind of fabric worn by the poorer class of people and also used for tents and sail." We find it hard to picture our favorite pair of dungarees flying from the mast of a sailing ship, but in those days Sailors often made both their working clothes and hammocks out of discarded sail cloth.
    The cloth used then wasn't as well woven nor was it dyed blue, but it served the purpose. Dungarees worn by Sailors of the Continental Navy were cut directly from old sails and remained tan in color just as they been when filled with wind. After battles, it was the practice in both the American and British Navies for Captains to report more sail lost in battle than actually was the case so the crew would have cloth to mend their hammocks and make new clothes. Since the cloth was called dungaree, clothes made from the fabric borrowed the name.

    2) The modern Sailor's work clothes. The term is not modern, however, but dates to the 18th century and comes from the Hindi word dungri, for a type of Indian cotton cloth.

    3) 1901 regulations authorized the first use of denim jumpers and trousers, and the 1913 regulations originally permitted the dungaree outfit to be used by both officers and enlisted with the hat of the day.

    4) The word dungarees (it is usually, though not always, found in the plural) is one of the relatively few mainstream English words to have come from Hindi, one of the major languages of India. The source word in Hindi is dungrí, and refers to a type of coarse cloth.
    In English, dungaree is usually used to refer specifically to blue denim cloth, and in plural to refer to clothes, especially trousers, made of such material.

Dutch Courage
     Alcohol.  Derived from the English and Dutch wars of the early 1600's.  It was the Dutch custom in those times to give their sailors liberal doses of gin or whiskey before going into battle.

Eagles (or "Crows") on Devices
    For many years the U.S. specified modified forms of the Napoleonic Eagle in the devices and insignia used to distinguish the various ranks and ratings of enlisted men and officers. This eagle was usually cast, stamped or embroidered facing left and the same practice was used by the Navy. Why the Napoleonic eagle faced left is unknown. In 1941 the Navy changed the eagles facing direction to follow the heraldic rules which faces the right toward the wearers sword arm. This rule continues to apply and the eagle now faces to the front or the wearers right.

Eight Bells
    Aboard Navy ships, bells are struck to designate the hours of being on watch. Each watch is four hours in length. One bell is struck after the first half-hour has passed, two bells after one hour has passed, three bells after an hour and a half, four bells after two hours, and so forth up to eight bells are struck at the completion of the four hours. Completing a watch with no incidents to report was "Eight bells and all is well."
    The practice of using bells stems from the days of the sailing ships. Sailors couldn't afford to have their own time pieces and relied on the ship's bells to tell time. The ship's boy kept time by using a half-hour glass. Each time the sand ran out, he would turn the glass over and ring the appropriate number of bells

Eyes of the Ship
    Most of the early ships had heads of mythological monsters or patrons carved in the bow; hence, the terms "figure head," "the heads" and the term "eyes of the ship" followed from the eyes of the figures placed there. Large "eyes" are still painted on the bows of Chinese junks.
    Sailors also believe that these "eyes" help them and their ship through a storm by magically seeing the right of way. One particular Sailor's tale says that on the day before he was to sail, he bought his wife two beautiful, green emeralds for earrings. He was heartbroken when she did not like them, so instead he used them as the eyes of the female "figure head" on the bow of his ship.
    His wife had a change of heart that night, and unbeknownst to her husband, removed the emeralds from the wooden figure. She planned to wear them upon his return, but he never did. One day after sailing, his ship steered right into a typhoon and sank. Some say it was because the ship could not "see" as his wife had stolen the ship's "eyes." When the wife heard the news, she cried for days until she fell asleep. When she awoke, she was blind... and the two beautiful emeralds had disappeared.

Fathom
    1) Although a fathom is now a nautical unit of length equal to six feet, it was once defined by an act of Parliament as "the length of a man's arms around the object of his affections." The word derives from the Old English Faethm, which means "embracing arms."

    2) Fathom was originally a land measuring term derived from the Anglo-Saxon word "fætm" meaning literally the embracing arms, or to embrace. In those days, most measurements were based on average sizes of parts of the body, such as the hand or foot, or were derived from average length between two points on the body.
    A fathom is the average distance from middle-fingertip to middle-fingertip of the outstretched arms of a six-foot tall man. Even today in our nuclear Navy, Sailors can be seen "guess-timating" the length of line by using the Anglo-Saxon fingertip method; crude but still reliable.

    3) Saint Paul relates in the New Testament that soundings were taken after a gale, and the ship was found to be in twenty fathoms of water.  The Greek word orgina, which means to stretch or reach out with the arms.  A sailor stretches out both arms and measures from finger tip to finger tip - an approximate fathom.

Figurehead
    This carved wooden figure placed at the bow had no function but to "see the way".  The term now denotes a person appointed to a leadership position, but with no real responsibilities.

Five-by-Five
    Five by five is a radio communications expression that means 'loud and clear'. One of the fives represents the S units of reception strength. The other five is a rating of the signal clarity. Five by five is a good, clear signal. The radio use of this expression goes back to the 1950s:  "'All right, testing, one-two-three-four. . .' 'Five by five, Mr. Holloran!'" (Hunter, Blackboard Jungle, 1954).
    There's a more metaphorical meaning that wasn't recorded until the 1980s: "'I hope everything's all right.' 'Yeah, everything is five by five'" (Eilert, Self & Country, 1983). That also seems to be the meaning used by Ferro, the drop ship captain in the movie Aliens, who says, "We're in the pipe, five by five" (1986). This use is primarily military.

Flogging the Clock
    Killing time or simply doing tasks in a slow and leisurely fashion.  Originally derived from "Flogging the Glass", a practice from the early days of sail when time on deck was marked by an hour-glass.  Young midshipmen entrusted with turning the glass over to mark the passing of an hour would tap on the side to make the sand fall through faster

Flotsam and Jetsam
    In the technical sense, flotsam and jetsam have different meanings. Flotsam the part of the wreckage of a ship or its cargo found floating on the water. Jetsam is cargo or parts of a ship that are deliberately thrown overboard, as to lighten the ship in an emergency, and that subsequently either sinks or is washed ashore. (While on the subject, we might as well mention lagan, which is goods thrown into the sea but attached to a buoy so they can be recovered.) The common phrase "flotsam and jetsam" is used to refer to the entire residue of a shipwreck, and is not redundant.
    Flotsam comes from the Anglo-French floteson, derived from Old French floter 'to float', which is related to the English word float. It is first attested in the early seventeenth century. Jetsam is an altered and abbreviated version of jettison, and is first found in the late  sixteenth century

Flying Dutchman
    One superstition has it that any mariner who sees the ghost ship called the Flying Dutchman will die within the day. The tale of the Flying Dutchman trying to round the Cape of Good Hope against strong winds and never succeeding, then trying to make Cape Horn and failing there too, has been the most famous of maritime ghost stories for more 300 years. The cursed spectral ship sailing back and forth on its endless voyage, its ancient white-hair crew crying for help while hauling at her sail, inspired Samuel Taylor Coleridge to write his classic "The Rime of the Ancient Mariner," to name but one famous literary work. The real Flying Dutchman is supposed to have set sail in 1660.

Forecastle
    1) The appropriate pronunciation for this word is "fo'ksul". The forecastle is the forward part of the main deck. It derives its name from the days of Viking galleys when wooden castles were built on the forward and after parts the main deck from which archers and other fighting men could shoot arrows and throw spears, rocks, etc.

    2) English in origin.  From "Fore-Castle".  In the very early days of sail, warships actually had castle-like structures fore and aft for combat.

Fouled anchor
    1) The fouled (rope- or chain-entwined) anchor so prevalent in our Navy's designs and insignia is a symbol at least 500 years old that has it origins in the British traditions adopted by our naval service.
    The fouled anchor was adopted as the official seal of Lord High Admiral Charles Lord Howard of Effingham during the late 1500s. A variation of the seal had been in use by the Lord High Admiral of Scotland about a century earlier.
    The anchor (both with and without the entwined rope) is a traditional heraldic device used in ancient British coats of arms. As a heraldic device, it is a stylized representation used merely for its decorative effect.

    2) An anchor that is foul of the cable or chain is a symbol found in various Navy crests.  The device is on the cap of American naval officers, the distinguishing device of a Chief Petty Officer, the collar device of midshipman, and on the cap badges of the British naval officers.
    Many sailors regard the device a sign of poor seamanship.  Although, artistic to a civilian, it has been called a sailor's disgrace by some. The badge has been traced back to 1601 and Lord Howard of Effingham, the Lord High Admiral, who used it first as a seal of his office, but the device was used previous even to that time.

Frigate
    From the French word, 'Frigata'.  Originally a class of Mediterranean vessels which used both oars and sails.  The French were the first to use frigates on the ocean for war or commerce.  By the eighteenth century, it became a term for a single-decked ship, or rather, a single gun-decked ship, with an upper, or 'weather' deck.  (Often called a 'spar' deck, since replacement spars for the ship's masts were stowed there for easy access).

FUBAR
    Fouled Up Beyond All Recognition.

Gadgets
    This well known word was originally the nautical name for hooks, and derives from the French "Gache."

Galley
    The galley is the kitchen of the ship. The best explanation as to its origin is that it is a corruption of "gallery". Ancient sailors cooked their meals on a brick or stone gallery laid amidships.

Geedunk, Gedunk
    1) Dessert/junk food/candy, or a place to buy same. Aka 'pogey bait'.

    2) "Extras" or benefits, awards, ribbons, or medals.

    3) Easy or "sweet" duty. Can be used as noun or verb.

    4) To most sailors the word geedunk means ice cream, candy, potato chips and other assorted snacks, or even the place where they can be purchased. No one, however, knows for certain where the term originated, but there are several plausible theories.
        - In the 1920's a comic strip character named Harold Teen and his friends spent a great amount of time at Pop's candy store. The store's owner called it The Geedunk for reasons never explained.
        - The Chinese word meaning a place of idleness sounds something like gee dung.
        - Geedunk is the sound made by a vending machine when it dispenses a soft drink in a cup.
        - It may be derived from the German word tunk meaning to dip or sop either in gravy or coffee. Dunking was a common practice in days when bread, not always obtained fresh, needed a bit of tunking to soften it. The ge is a German unaccented prefix denoting repetition. In time it may have changed from getunk to geedunk.

    5)  World War II in origin.  It was the slang nick-name given by sailors for the pre-mixed concentrate (Often labeled as 'General Dairy' products on the containers) that was loaded aboard American warships to be made into ice cream while at sea.  Some scholars argue it was originally intended to be a substitute for the rum ration privilege given to British sailors, while others point out that ice cream was a popular American treat anyway, and could be easily made aboard ship.  In either case, American warships since WW II have had sea-going ice cream soda shops or fountains, where this commodity could be regularly sold to members of the crew for a small sum.  Gradually, other snack foods such as candy bars, chips, cookies, etc. were added to the stocks.  The term is now generally applied to all "junk" food that is not on the ship's regular menu.

    Whatever theory we use to explain geedunk's origin, it doesn't alter the fact that Navy people are glad it all got started.

Gig Line
    On a sailor’s uniform, a line formed by the buttoned shirt, a crease on the belt buckle, and the trousers’ fly. If your gig line isn’t straight, you hear about it at personnel inspections.

Goat Locker
    1) Chiefs' Quarters and Mess. The term originated during the era of wooden ships, when Chiefs were given charge of the milk goats on board. Nowadays more a term of respect for the age of its denizens.

    2) Entertainment on liberty took many forms, mostly depending on the coast and opportunity. One incident which became tradition was at a Navy-Army football game. In early sailing years, livestock would travel on ships, providing the crew the fresh milk, meats, and eggs. as well as serving as ships' mascots. One pet, a goat named El Cid (meaning Chief) was the mascot aboard the USS New York. When its crew attended the fourth Navy-Army football game in 1893, they took El Cid to the game, which resulted in the West Pointers losing. El Cid (The Chief) was offered shore duty at Annapolis and became the Navy's mascot. This is believed to be the source of the old Navy term, "Goat Locker".

Goldbrick
    The main meaning of goldbrick is 'a person who shirks responsibilities; loafer; malingerer'. It is one of those words that you don't expect to come from where it really does come from.
    Specifically, the original meaning truly was 'a brick made of base metal that appears to be made of gold'. This object was used in a swindle where the swindler would sell it to someone for less than it would be worth than if it were truly gold, but far more than it is really worth.  Figuratively, goldbrick meant 'any fraudulent or worthless thing', the expression to sell a goldbrick meant 'to swindle or cheat', and the verb goldbrick also meant 'to swindle'.
    So the senses of goldbrick referring to shirking duty or loafing all stem from the senses meaning referring to swindling, it being a short step from 'swindler' to 'shirker', semantically.
    The earliest meaning, 'fraudulent gold-colored brick', is first found in the early 1880s in America. The shirk-related senses (noun, 'a shirker'; verb, 'to shirk'; and goldbricker 'a shirker') all are from U.S. Army use in the First World War.

Golden Rivet
    The mythical last rivet which completes a ship.  Generally found in the depths of the engineering spaces, a maneuver used to get a female guest to bend over. "And if you look 'way down there, you can see the golden rivet!"

Grog
    1) Grog is an expression for watered rum. In 1740, Admiral Vernon, RN (whose nickname was "Old Grog") ordered that rum rations be watered.

    2) Grog originally referred to a mixture of rum cut with water. The admiral in question, Edward Vernon (1684-1757), had given an order in 1740 that the rum normally served to seamen be watered down -- previously, they had gotten straight rum as part of their standard ration. Vernon's nickname was Old Grog, after his custom of wearing a grogram cloak, and Grog was transferred from the admiral's nickname to the name of the drink he required for his men.  The word is first found in the 1750s.

Gundecking
    1) In the modern Navy, falsifying reports, records and the like is often referred to as "gundecking." The origin of the term is somewhat obscure, but at the risk of gundecking, here are two plausible explanations for its modern usage. The deck below the upper deck on British sailing ships-of-war was called the gundeck although it carried no guns. This false deck may have been constructed to deceive enemies as to the amount of armament carried, thus the gundeck was a falsification.
    A more plausible explanation may stem from shortcuts taken by early Midshipmen when doing their navigation lessons. Each Mid was supposed to take sun lines at noon and star sights at night and then go below to the gundeck, work out their calculations and show them to the navigator. Certain of these young men, however, had a special formula for getting the correct answers. They would note the noon or last position on the quarter-deck traverse board and determine the approximate current position by dead reckoning plotting. Armed with this information, they proceeded to the gundeck to "gundeck" their navigation homework by simply working backwards from the dead reckoning position.

    2) False claims of completed tasks, cheating, or short-cutting.  In the days of fighting sail, the exclusive domain of the enlisted men was the lower deck where the ship's heaviest cannons were installed.  This was known as the gun deck, and here the crew, 8 to 10 men per gun, slung their hammocks, set up their mess tables, and hung their personal belongings in "ditty bags".  At the beginning of a normal working day, the Captain or First Mate would write in the Deck Log Book the maintenance, minor repairs, or cleaning jobs that he wanted done.  Many of the these tasks were assigned to senior enlisted men who were entrusted to find the necessary men and resources to do them.  Skilled but illiterate, they would verbally report to the Officer of the Deck when a particular job was finished. He would then refer to the log book, find the ordered task, and write for example, "Accomplished by gun-deck party, Seaman Jones or Petty Officer Kentworth in charge."  Over the years, "Accomplished by the gun-deck" was shortened to "gun-deck", and eventually came to describe any task that was performed without detailed supervision.  Sometimes, however, unscrupulous seamen would do the job hastily or perhaps even not at all, and the Officer would just accept their word.

Gun Salutes
    In the days of cannon, it took as long as twenty minutes to load and fire a gun. When a ship fired her guns in salute, she rendered herself powerless for the duration. By emptying their guns, the ship's crew showed shore batteries and forts that they were no threat. Over time, this gesture became a show of respect, with both shore and ship gun batteries firing volleys.
    While many people like to say the 21 gun salute was a tribute to the American Revolution, a number determined as a result of adding together the numbers 1+7+7+6, the truth is the 21 gun salute was an effort to cut costs. The habit of firing salutes became wasteful, with ships and shore batteries firing shots for hours on end. This was particularly expensive for ships, which had a limited space to store powder (which went bad quickly in the salt air). The British admiralty first dictated the policies now in place as a practical matter to save gunpowder. The rule was simple, for every volley fired by a ship in salute, a shore battery could return up to three shots. The regulations limited ships to a total of seven shots in salute, so the 21 gun-salute became the salute used to honor the only the most important dignitaries.
    Today, the U.S. Navy Regulations proscribe that only those ships and stations designated by the Secretary of the Navy may fire gun salutes. A national salute of 21 guns is fired on:

Washington's Birthday
Memorial Day
Independence Day
To honor the President of the United States
To honor heads of foreign states.

Admiral-17 guns
Vice Admiral-15 guns
Rear Admiral (upper half)-13 guns
Rear Admiral (lower half)-11 guns

Gung-Ho
     Someone enthusiastic about a job, mission, or effort.  Usually applied to US Marines and often among themselves as both an insult and a compliment.  It is a Chinese phrase meaning, "work together", or "all together", such as when pulling a heavy weight.  This was adopted by US Marines stationed in China just before WW II, and then later formalized as the official slogan for Marine Colonel Carlson's Second Marine Raider Battalion.

    2) From the old Bahamian word, 'hammack'.  Columbus in 1498 noted how the natives of the Bahamas used woven cotton nets as beds, suspending them off the ground.  The Spanish changed the word to 'hamaco'. Sailors of all navies quickly realized the convience and utility of using sails in a similar fashion, since they were easy to stow and freed up valuable working space by day.

Hand Salute
    see Salutes

Handsomely
     Derived from the Swedish word 'hinna', or 'hands', which originally meant, 'easy to handle'.  It became a term in the old navy (16th Century) to describe an action to be done slowly, carefully, and steadily.

Hashmarks
    Chevrons or stripes worn on the sleeve to signify years of service.  In the Navy, each stipe signifies 4 years.

Hawser
    Middle English in origin. -'Halse', and Old Norse, 'Hals', meaning 'neck'.  This is a thick, large rope (about the size of a man's neck') used for towing or securing a ship to its anchor, or tied to a pier. This is also the origin of the word, 'hawsepipe', which refers to the hole in the bow area where the ship's anchor chain runs out.

Head
    The use of "head" in this context sounds like an anatomical joke, or the work of someone who, to put it delicately, didn't know their head from their foot. But after a dip into some maritime history, calling a ship's bathroom the head makes perfect sense.
    That's head, as in the forward part of the ship, the bow. In the days of sailing vessels, there wasn't any indoor plumbing on land or at sea. Sailors took care of business while hanging over the edge of the ship by ropes or on a platform - always at the bow.
    Why the bow? Because sailing ships had to have the wind coming from behind them to power their sails. Thus, if the sailor chose the stern, or back of the ship, the wind would be coming toward him. And, well ... you wouldn't *spit* into the wind, would you?

He Knows the Ropes
    In the very early days, this phrase was written on a seaman's discharge to indicate that he was still a novice. All he knew about being a sailor was just the names and uses of the principal ropes (lines). Today, this same phrase means the opposite — that the person fully knows and understands the operation (usually of the organization).

Holystone
    1) Soft sandstone, often used to scrub the decks of ships. Sailors had to kneel as if in prayer when scrubbing the decks. Holystone was often called so because it is full of holes.

    2) The last Navy ships with teak decks were the battleships, now since decommissioned. Teak, and other wooden decks, were scrubbed with a piece of sandstone, nicknamed at one time by an anonymous witty sailor as the "holystone." It was so named because since its use always brought a man to his knees, it must be holy!

    3) A small abrasive stone of pumice or rough slate that was used to smooth and polish the wooden decks of a sailing ship.  For ease of handling and stowage, it was almost exactly the same size as the average Bible, or "holy" book. Another origin of the term is that fragments of broken monuments from the abbey of Saint Nicholas (located in Great Yarmouth, England), were used at one time to scrub the decks of the British Navy.

Honcho
    Japanese in origin.  "Han" (squad) and 'cho" (head) which was combined to mean "squad leader".  Loosely applied to mean "Boss" or "Big Shot".  Adopted by the US Pacific Fleet after WW II and popularized during the Vietnam War.

Horse Latitudes
    Towards the southern climates (Tropic of Cancer) near the Equator, which was roughly about a month's sail from England and Europe.  Because of the doldrums (Lack of wind) in the area, ships were often becalmed for many days or weeks at a time, causing a water shortage.  Livestock, especially horses, died first, or were simply killed and thrown overboard to save water. Their carcasses were often sighted by other ships traveling in this area, and so the region acquired that name.

Hunky-Dori
    This term, meaning everything is OK, was coined from a street named Honki-Dori in Yokohama. As the inhabitants of this street catered to the pleasures of Sailors, one can readily understand why the street's name became synonymous for anything that is enjoyable or satisfactory.

In Through the Hawsepipe
    Sometimes we hear an old Chief Petty Officer claim he came into the Navy through the hawsepipe and it makes one wonder if he is referring to some early enlistment program. Actually, it was an enlistment program of sorts; it means a person is salty and savvies the ways of the sea because he began his nautical career on the lowest ladder of the deck force. A hawespipe or hawsehole, incidentally, is a hole in the bow of the ship through which the anchor chain runs.

Irish Pennant
    1) Any dangling or loose thread on a uniform, or lines left adrift or dangling from the upper works or rigging of the ship.

    2)  "Irish pennants" &  "Dutch pennants" are both 'untidy ropes hanging from aloft', according to Granville's Dictionary of Sailor's Slang.

Jack
    1) The Jack is a replica of the blue, star-studded field of the National Ensign that is flown by ships at anchor from 8 a.m. to sunset. The Jack is hoisted at a yardarm when a general court-martial or a court of inquiry is in session. It is half-masted if the Ensign is half-masted, but it is not dipped when the Ensign is dipped.

    2) Sailor (Nick-name for 'John', which was a very common name in England, and thus came to be used for anyone) In the days of sail, it referred to a bar of iron at topgallant masthead to support a royal mast and spread the royal shrouds.

Jack O' the Dust
    1) The Commissary man in charge of loading stores. Derived from the fact that most early provisions were dry goods; flour, beans etc. and created much dust when taken aboard.

    2) Ship's Baker.  Given because the man could have such a covering of flour dust while working as to make him unrecognizable, hence the given but common name of 'Jack'.

Jacob's Ladder
    Jacob's Ladder is a portable ladder made of rope or metal and used primarily as an aid in boarding a ship. Originally, the Jacob's Ladder was a network of line leading to the skysail on wooden ships. The name alludes to the biblical Jacob, reputed to have dreamed that he climbed a ladder to the sky. Anyone who has ever tried climbing a Jacob's Ladder while carrying a seabag can appreciate the allusion. It does seem that the climb is long enough to take one into the next world.

Jaunty
    This was once the nick-name for the ship's master-at-arms. It comes from the French word 'gendarme'. He was an official who supervised floggings and other disciplinary actions.  Along with his military duties, The master-at-arms' role was also that of enforcing shipboard discipline. Knowing his power, he was a man apt to swagger about the decks with a 'gendarme', or 'jaunty' type of gait

Java
    Another Bluejacket term for Coffee.  For twenty years before "grog" was legislated out of the Navy, the rum ration was cut back and coffee and tea were supplied as a substitute.  Congress passed a  bill on 23 May 1872 that provided "an additional ration of coffee and sugar to be served at his (the bluejacket's) first turning out."  Not a surprise to most, the United States Navy uses more coffee than any other military organization in the world.

Jibe
    'Jibe' is the maneuver used when a sailing jib is utilized to turn the ship sharply back and forth, causing enemy gunners to throw off their aim or to gain a maneuvering advantage.  It was also used to bring a ship's mainsails into the wind.  Thus, the term, "That jibes with what I heard," refers to confirming a belief.  Conversely, "I've had enough of your jibes," means the speaker is tired of the other person's joking or erratic behavior.

Jig's Up
    From the old French word "giguer" to dance, and the old High German word "gigue" for fiddle.  It was first used to describe a lively, springy dance.  It was also used to describe an early French fishing method ('giguer') of using a series of gang hooks and jerking them up and down through a crowded school of fish, thus hooking them by surprise.  It thus became used to describe the moment when a joke, prank, or clever game is finished.

Jumper Flaps
    The collar originated as a protective cover for the jacket to protect it from the grease or powder normally worn by seamen to hold hair in place.

Junk
    Worn-out rope, or old salted meat that looked and tasted like it.  Junk rigging was sold by the mate to a "junkman."

Jury Rig
    1) A temporary fix.  Jury-rig is based on one word "jury" which is a nautical sense meaning 'makeshift; temporary' and one word "rig" referring to a ship's sails and masts. The first known example of this "jury" is the compound jury-mast, 'a temporary mast put up to replace one that has been broken or lost', attested since the early seventeenth century. A jury-rig, then, is 'a temporary or makeshift rigging', and the verb is used figuratively in the sense 'to assemble or arrange hastily in a makeshift manner'. The origin of this word "jury" is not certain, but some scholars identify it with iuwere, a late Middle English word meaning 'help; aid', borrowed from the Old French ajurie.

    2) Any hastily‑devised, or temporary construction to perform a task or repair.  Usually referred to a broken mast fixed with braces and planks to create a makeshift mast until safe harbor could be reached.  Some scholars argue it comes from the term. 'injury' to a ship that had to be repaired, while others contend that the repairs were done by a group of men called hastily together to perform a 'quick-fix', which is a sarcastic reference to how legal juries are said to function.

Keel hauling
    1) A naval punishment on board ships said to have originated with the Dutch but adopted by other navies during the 15th and 16th centuries. A rope was rigged from yardarm to yardarm, passing under the bottom of the ship, and the unfortunate delinquent secured to it, sometimes with lead or iron weights attached to his legs. He was hoisted up to one yardarm and then dropped suddenly into the sea, hauled underneath the ship, and hoisted up to the opposite yardarm, the punishment being repeated after he had had time to recover his breath. While he was under water, a "great gun" was fired, "which is done as well to astonish him so much the more with the thunder of the shot, as to give warning until all others of the fleet to look out and be wary by his harms" (from Nathaniel Boteler, A Dialogicall Discourse, 1634). The U.S. Navy never practiced keel hauling.

    2) Today, “keelhauling” refers to a verbal reprimand; originally, it was a cruel form of punishment that consisted of binding the offender hand and foot, weighing his body, then drawing him under the ship’s bottom from one fore yardarm to the other, by means of whips. If the bottom was covered with sharp barnacles, the torture was extreme and often fatal.

Khaki
    1) Originated in 1845 in India where British soldiers soaked white uniforms in mud, coffee, and curry powder to blend in with the landscape. Khakis made their debut in the U.S. Navy in 1912 when they were worn by naval aviators, and were adopted for submarines in 1931. In 1941 the Navy approved khakis for on-station wear by senior officers, and soon after Pearl Harbor chiefs and officers were authorized to wear khakis ashore on liberty.

    2) A durable, impregnated cloth light brown in color and first used by the British Army as a uniform in the late 1800's.  Derived from the Ghurka (Northern India tribe from the Himalayan Mountains) word for 'mud'.  It has since become the distinctive color in the American Navy to mark off officers and Chief Petty Officers.

Kiddy Cruiser (also "Baby Cruiser")
    A sailor whose enlistment ends at age 21. Generally a WWII term.

Knee-knockers
    The coaming of a watertight door or bulkhead opening. These coamings are a foot or so off the deck. So called because they can wreak havoc on the shins of those new to shipboard life.

Knock off work
    The galleys of sailing ships were once filled with men rowing to the rhytm of a mallet striking a wooden block.  It was only time to quit rowing when the knocking stopped.

Knot
    1) The term knot, or nautical mile, is used world-wide to denote one's speed through water. Today, we measure knots with electronic devices, but 200 years ago such devices were unknown.
    Ingenious marines devised a speed measuring device both easy to use and reliable, the "log line." From this method we get the term "Knot." The log line was a length of twine marked at 47.33-foot intervals by colored knots. At one end a log chip was fastened. It was shaped like the sector of a circle and weighted at the rounded end with lead. When thrown over the stern, it would float pointing upward and would remain relatively stationary. The log line was allowed to run free over the side for 28 seconds and then hauled on board. Knots which had passed over the side were counted. In this way, the ships speed was measured.

    2) The line tied to a ship's casting log to determine its speed was marked off by knots tied along its length.  The length of the knot was derived from the proportion that one hour (3,600 seconds) is to 28 seconds as one nautical mile (6,080 ft.) is to the length of a knot (47 ft. 3 in.).  The faster a ship went, the more 'knots' were paid out before a given amount of time.

Landlubber
    The word landlubber, first recorded in the late 1690s, is formed from land and the earlier lubber. This lubber dates from the fourteenth century and originally meant 'a clumsy, stupid fellow; lout; oaf'. By the sixteenth century it had developed the specialized sense 'an unseamanlike person; inexperienced seaman', which is the same sense as landlubber and was eventually combined with land to emphasize the unfamiliarity-with-the-sea aspect.

Leatherneck
     The fond nickname for a US Marine.  Derived from their earliest uniforms, which featured a  stiff, upright leather collar as a protection against sword cuts while boarding an enemy ship.

"Let the Cat Out of the Bag"
    1) Originally, this term simply meant to remove the cat (cat o’nine tails) from its baize bag, generally preliminary to administering punishment. The term’s meaning today is to reveal a secret.

    2) This has its origins in the grim ceremony of removing the rope or rawhide "cat-o'-nine-tails" from its carrying bag in preparation of flogging an offender.  It was eventually applied to any other untimely, if less serious, revelation, which could lead to legal action or punishment.

Log Books
    1) Today, any bound record kept on a daily basis aboard ship is called a "log." Originally, records were kept on the sailing ship by inscribing information onto shingles cut from logs and hinged so they opened like books. When paper became more readily available, "log books" were manufactured from paper and bound. Shingles were relegated to naval museums but the slang term stuck.

    2) In the old days of sail, literally the only way of determining a ship's speed was to cast a small log secured to a line from the bow of the ship.  By paying out the marked length of the line and timing how long it took for the log to reach the stern, the ship's speed could then be calculated.  During each watch, the log had to be cast every hour, and the ship's speed and compass course noted in a book so the captain could use it for his navigation.  It soon became customary and then required to note other observations such as weather conditions, time of sunrise and sunset, moonrise, sea state, and any happenings on board the ship.

Loggerhead
    A word derived from 'logger-heat', which was a piece of iron on a long wooden handle used for melting pitch and/or applying it to the wooden seams of a ship.  The iron after heating was dipped into a bucket of cold pitch, which softened and congealed around the iron, and then could be applied to the needed area.  However, it could be a handy and deadly weapon when sailors fought each other, or were at 'loggerheads'.

"Long" Shot
    A modern gambling term with an old nautical origin. Because ships' guns in early days were very inaccurate except at close quarters, it was only an extremely lucky shot that would hit the mark at any great distance, hence the inference of "luck" in the gambling term.

Lubber
    Middle English in Origin.  'lobar' or 'lobar'. A big, clumsy fellow.  It was applied to brand‑new sailors with no skills of seamanship.  Fit only for hard, simple work.

    2) A compartment or locker where masters-at-arms stow articles of clothing, bedding, and other items left adrift.  Originally, articles were placed in a bag called the "lucky bag" which was in the custody of the master-at-arms.  In a narrative of a cruise in the USS Columbia in 1838, the writer relates that the bag was brought to the mainmast once a month, and the owners of the articles "if their names are on them, get them again, with a few lashes for their carelessness in leaving them about the deck."  The term "lucky" in this case is a bluejacket's twisted humor.  One wag suggested another definition is "a sailor's wife."

Mail Buoy Watch
    A practical joke pulled on inexperienced crewmembers and midshipmen which revolves around convincing the victim that mail is delivered to a ship at sea via a buoy.  The more gullible victims are dressed in outlandish garb (lifejacket, helmet) and with a boat hook and sound powered telephone directed to stand watch for the buoy and retrieve the mail.

Manning the Rails
    This custom evolved from the centuries old practice of "manning the yards." Men aboard sailing ships stood evenly spaced on all the yards and gave three cheers to honor a distinguished person.
    Now men and women are stationed along the rails of a ship when honors are rendered to the President, the heads of a foreign state, or a member of a reigning royal family. Men and women so stationed do not salute. Navy ships will often man the rails when entering a port, or when returning to the ship's homeport at the end of a deployment.

Mark Twain
    Pen name for American author Samuel Longhorn Clemens("Tom Sawyer", "Huckleberry Finn", etc).  He took it from his days as a riverboat pilot on the Mississippi.  Sounding ropes had a mark at each fathom of length, or six foot intervals.  Safe depth for a paddlewheel steamer was around 12 feet or so.  Leadsmen when casting out the line would call, "By the Mark, Twain!" if there were two fathoms on the line, "By the Mark, Three!" or "By the mark, Four!" for each fathom.  Just to save time, the two-fathom mark on the line was often marked with a special rag to make it stand out from the others.  When the leadsman cast it out and it went below the surface, he knew that the depth was at least twelve feet, and so he would simply call out "Mark Twain!", since all the pilot was really interested in was whether or not he had safe passage.  

Marlinespike
    Also spelled marlinspike and found in hyphenated and open forms, is a long, pointed iron tool used in separating the strands of a rope in splicing, marling, etc. The phrase marlinespike seamanship refers to the art of using a marlinespike. Wilfred Granville, in his Dictionary of Sailors' Slang (1950), defines it as the "Art of knotting and splicing, and general rope work in which the marline spike, a pointed tool for unravelling, is used."
    The word marlinespike is first attested in the early seventeenth century. The original form was apparently marling spike, where marling is the gerund of the verb marl 'to tie; wind a rope with cord', of Germanic origin. (Spike is, of course, the standard word 'a nail-like fastener'.) The marling was then reinterpreted as marline 'a light cord wrapped around the end of a rope to keep it from fraying', from marl (as discussed above) and line. There's a late-fifteenth-century example of marling iron, which gives credence to this explanation.

Marooned
    This old punishment for mutineers consisted of placing them on an island with musket, cutlass, and a breaker of water; and leaving them to their fate. It got its name from a certain Ci-maroon Indians who had been transplanted in the West Indies as cheap labor and, deserted by their Spanish masters, had been left to starve to death. The famous Captain Drake discovered them in a pitiable condition and gained the Indian's lasting gratitude by returning them to their far-off home.

Master - at- Arms
    A senior petty officer charged with keeping order aboard ship.  Naval records show these "sheriffs of the sea" were keeping order aboard ship since the time of King Charles I of England.  At the time, they were charged with keeping the swords, pistols, carbines and muskets in good working order as well as ensuring that the bandoleers were filled with fresh powder before combat.  Besides being the 'chief of police' at sea, the sea corporals, as they were called in the British Navy, had to be experienced with swords, pikes, and small arms, and able to train seamen in hand-to-hand combat.  In the days of sail, the MAAs were truly "master at arms."  The Master-at-Arms in the US Navy today can trace the beginnings of his official rating to the Union Navy of the Civil War.

Mate
    A companion.  Mate appears as early as the 13th century, as a corruption of the Dutch word "mattenoot."  Loosely translated it means companion,  or the person with whom you shared your hammock (one being on duty while the other slept in it.  Hot bunking is not new!).  In some trades, like that of stevedores, the French word "matelot" is used in the same sense as the English word mate.  That being the person with whom you lift sacks which are too heavy to be lifted by one man alone.

Mayday
    The distress call for voice radio, for vessels and people in serious trouble at sea. The term was made official by an international telecommunications conference in 1948, and is an anglicizing of the French "m'aidez," (help me).

Mess & Messdecks
    1) Most people probably share the belief that the primary meaning of mess is 'a dirty or untidy' condition, and the 'meal' sense is somehow derived from this or perhaps represents a different word.
    Actually, the original sense of the word mess is 'a quantity of food'. First recorded in the thirteenth century, this had a number of related senses: 'a quantity of food sufficient for a dish or a single occasion' ("a mess of beans"); 'a dish or quantity of soft or liquid food; a mixture of ingredients'; 'a group regularly taking their meals together, or the meal so taken'; 'sloppy or unappetizing food'.
    The word mess is borrowed from Old French, from Late Latin missus 'a course at a meal', literally 'what is sent', that is, 'what is placed on the table', a noun use of the participle of mittere 'to send'.

    2) From the Latin term "mensa" meaning tables.  "Mesa" is Spanish for table and "mes" in old Gothic means a dish.  The English word originally meant four, and at large meal gatherings diners were seated in fours.  Shakespeare wrote of Henry's four sons as his "mess of sons."  The word "mess" that suggests confusion comes from the German "mischen," meaning to mix.     Messmates, are those who eat together.  Smythe's, Sailors' Word Book, yields the ditty, "Messmate before shipmate, shipmate before stranger, stranger before a dog."

    3) Middle English in origin. - 'Mes', meaning a dish. Hence the term, 'a mess of pottage'.  The word in English originally denoted four, and at large or formal dinners, the guests were seated in 'fours'. The average gun crew size was eight men (2 sets of four), and they worked, ate, stood watches, and slept together as a unit.  This is the true origin of 'mess decks', where the ship's crew take their meals.  The other application of the word 'mess', or confusion, is derived from the German word 'mischen', meaning to mix.

Messcrank
    Also Known As CRANK.  Food service personnel, especially nonrated personnel provided by the ship's other departments (non-Supply depts.) to perform scutwork such as busing tables, washing dishes, etc.

Midrats
    Food served at midnight for ongoing watchstanders, although the oncoming watch section commonly does not get up early enough to partake. Offgoing section gets the remnants, if any. Usually a combination of leftovers, plus something new to round out the service.

Mind Your P's & Q's
    1) There are few of us who at one time or another have not been admonished to "mind our P's and Q's," or in other words, to behave our best. Oddly enough, "mind your P's and Q's" had nautical beginnings as a method of keeping books on the waterfront.
    In the days of sail when Sailors were paid a pittance, seamen drank their ale in taverns whose keepers were willing to extend credit until payday. Since many salts were illiterate, keepers kept a talley of pints and quarts consumed by each Sailor on a chalkboard behind the bar. Next to each person's name, a mark was made under "P" for pint or "Q" for quart whenever a seaman ordered another draught.
    On payday, each seaman was liable for each mark next to his name, so he was forced to "mind his P's and Q's" or he would get into financial trouble. To ensure an accurate count by unscrupulous keepers, Sailors had to keep their wits and remain somewhat sober. Sobriety usually ensured good behavior, hence the meaning of "mind your P's and Q's."

    2) Frankly, it would be difficult to find another English expression that has spawned more putative origins than this one -- from pronunciations and puns through pubs, printing, and pedagogy. Here are some samples, each offered as if true:

Pronunciations and puns: (1) The term, reduced to "peas and kyous," comes from p(l)eas(es) and (than)k yous (which would establish a pretty direct connection to manners). (2) In the court of Louis XIV, dancing masters cautioned fledgling courtiers to mind their pieds (their dancing feet) and queues (their full wigs -- the so-called "periwigs" or long "perruques" worn by fashionable men, sometimes including an even longer braided strand hanging down the back and tied with a ribbon). What with all that bobbing and curtsying, it would have been awkward if the courtiers' wigs fell off or they tripped on their hair. (3) Attested in an earlier citation (1602), "Now thou art in thy pee and cue," the references are to a fashionable "pea coat" and probably again to a "queue."

Pubs: A cumulative tally of bills for befuddled customers, showing how many pints and quarts they had each imbibed, was kept on a board near the bar, using these letters as abbreviations. Barkeepers would be warned not to confuse the more expensive "Q" with the piddling "P."  Even with no intentional mistake, a hastily scrawled circle with a tail pointing vaguely downward from its bottom could wind up looking ambiguous.

Printing: Early printers had to deal with text as a mirror image. Try it with lower-case p's and q's and you'll see why apprentices would have been apprised of the risk of confusion. The question is: why wasn't that confusion attributed as easily to b's and d's?

Pedagogy: The poor 5- and 6-year-olds learning to read and write, having spent their little lives learning that objects remain constant no matter how you turn them around, now find that p's and q's are not like cups with handles, which always remain cups with handles; instead these letters switch identities when the "handle" moves from left to right. Once more, however, why not b's and d's?

Monkey Fist
    1) The complex knot surrounding (sometimes taking the place of) the weight on the end of a heaving line.

    2) A rounded knob at the end of a light throwing line which the Boatswain's Mates (or other linehandlers) would use to heave the first line across to another ship or pier. The Monkey's Fist had a lead weight in the center to give it extra momentum when the bosun's mate aimed it at some unwary seaman in the target area.

Moor
    From the Dutch word 'marren', meaning to tie or fasten

Mustang
    An officer who has 'come up through the ranks', i.e. started out as an enlisted man and earned a commission.

Navy Blue
    Blue has not always been navy blue. In fact it wasn't until 1745 that the expression navy blue meant anything at all. In that year several British officers petitioned the Admiralty for adaptation of new uniforms for it's officers. The first lord requested several officers to model various uniforms under consideration so he could select the best. He then selected selected several uniforms of various styles and colors to present to King George II for final decision. King George, unable to decide on either style or color, finally chose a blue and white because they were the favorite color combinations of the first lord's wife, Duchess of Bedford.

Navy Colors
    27 August 1802 the Secretary of the Navy signed an instruction which set a pattern for the dress of the U.S. Navy in Blue and Gold.

Navy Gray Uniforms
    Gray uniforms in the same style as khaki were first introduced on 16 April 1943 as an officers uniform. On 3 June 1943 the uniform was extended to include Chief Petty Officers. On 31 March 1944 cooks and stewards were permitted to wear the gray uniform. The Navy abolished use of "grays" on 15 October 1949.

Navy Seal
    The Department of the Navy Seal was created in 1957. An official Navy flag was authorized by Presidential Order on 24 Apr 1959. The design is on a circular background of fair sky and moderate sea with land in sinister base, a three-masted square-rigged ship underway before a fair breeze with after topsail furled, commission pennant atop the foremast, National Ensign atop the main, and the commodore's flag atop the mizzen. In front of the ship a Luce-type anchor inclined slightly bendwise with the crown resting on the land and, in front of the shank and in back of the dexter fluke, an American bald eagle rising to sinister regarding to dexter, one foot on the ground, the other resting on the anchor near the shank; all in proper colors. The whole within a blue annulet bearing the inscrip tion "Department of the Navy" at top, and "United States of America" at the bottom, separated on each side by a mullet and within a rim in the form of a rope; inscription, rope, mullet, and edges of annulet all gold

Neckerchief
    The black neckerchief or bandanna first appeared as early as the 16th century and was utilized as a sweat band and collar closure. Black was the predominant color as it was practical and did not readily show dirt. There is no truth to the myth that the black neckerchief was designed as a sign of mourning for Admiral Nelsons death.

Neckerchief Square Knot
    There is no historical significance to the knot other that it being a knot widely used by sailors which presents a uniform appearance.

No Quarter
    This is a term, indicative of a fight to the death, gathers its meaning from the reverse of "giving Quarter," an old custom by which officers, upon surrender, could save their lives by paying a ransom of "One Quarter of their pay."

"No room to swing a cat"
    Insufficient room to carry out a flogging, which punishment was performed with a Cat-o-nine tails.

Oh Dark Thirty
    Very late at night, or very early in the morning. AKA "Zero Dark Thirty"

One Good Turn Deserves Another
    Old sailor's advice to keep a ship or anything else of value tied up secure by taking yet another turn of the rope around the mooring bits.

Opportunity
    Even this term has a nautical origin. In the days of sail, ships depended upon the incoming, or flood tide, to take them into port.  If they arrived early or late, then they had to stand off outside of the harbor's entrance to wait for the right time.  The ancient Romans referred to this as "Ob Portu", which literally translated as, 'standing off port, waiting for the moment.'  It has evolved into English as the word, 'opportunity', meaning, 'the right moment'

Ornamental Sleeve Buttons
    The decorative bone buttons that are today sewn on many suit jackets, sports coats and blazers began as an effort by Lord Nelson to keep young midshipsmen and cabinboys from wiping their noses on their sleeves.
    In the days of sail, young boys, often as young as nine years old, would sign on sailing ships as cabinboys, usually becoming midshipmen as they got older. Many, particularly on their first voyages, would become homesick, tearfully tending to their duties in their fancy gentlemen's uniform. That uniform had no pockets for a handkerchief, so the young boys would, like all young boys, wipe their noses on their sleeves.
    To break his cabinboys and midshipmen of this ungentlemanly habit, Lord Nelson had large brass buttons sewn on the sleeves of all midshipmen and cabinboy uniforms. The decorative value of the buttons were soon realized, and in short order, London tailors were adding decorative buttons to frocks, coats, and dinner jackets. Though the buttons have become less gaudy, the practice continues.

Parish-Rigged
    Any ship with cheap or second-hand rigging, cheap equipment, cheap food, and cheap accommodations.  Almost certainly to be paying cheap wages as well.  A term used to describe any ship with owners who wish to maximize profits and reduce overhead to the barest of minimums. - Closely related to "poor as church-mice", meaning a poor parish or country church.

Passing Honors
    Passing honors are ordered by ships and boats when vessels, embarked officials, or embarked officers pass (or are passed) close aboard - 600 yards for ships, 400 yards for boats.
    Such honors are exchanged between ships of the U.S. Navy, between ships of the Navy and the Coast Guard, and between U.S. and most foreign navy ships passing close aboard. "Attention" is sounded, and the hand salute is rendered by all persons in view on deck (not in ranks).

Pea Coat
    1) Sailors who have to endure pea-soup weather often don their pea coats, but the coat's name isn't derived from the weather. The heavy topcoat worn in cold, miserable weather by seafaring men was once tailored from pilot cloth — a heavy, course, stout kind of twilled blue cloth with the nap on one side. The cloth was sometimes called P-cloth for the initial letter of "pilot" and the garment made from it was called a p-jacket — later, a pea coat. The term has been used since 1723 to denote coats made from that cloth.

    2) The word peacoat (the usual form, though pea coat is also common) refers to a short double-breasted coat made of heavy, coarse wool, that was originally worn by sailors. The word is a classic example of a folk etymology.
    The original form was pea jacket, referring to the same garment. In both cases, the word pea does not represent our pea 'round green edible legume'. Rather it is ultimately from a Dutch or Frisian word that referred to a type of coarse cloth. A pea jacket was just a jacket made of pea.
    In English, pea, found in various spellings, is recorded as far back as the fifteenth century and in compounds in the fourteenth. Its ultimate history is obscure. It is unclear whether pea jacket is an English coinage based on pea and jacket, or if it is a borrowing of a Dutch or Frisian word such as pijekkat in the same sense. But the modern spelling with pea, and the general belief that it has something to do with the legume, is what gives it its folk etymological flavor.
    Pea jacket is first recorded in the early eighteenth century; peacoat in the late eighteenth.

3) Believed to come from the Dutch word 'pij', which was a coarse, woolen cloth.  Another possible origin lies in the fact that early Navy coats were made from a heavy material called, 'pilot cloth', hence, 'P-Coat'.

Petty Officers
    The Petty Officer can trace his title back to the old French word petit meaning something small. Over the years the word also came to mean minor, secondary and subordinate. In medieval and later England just about every village had several "petite", "pety" or "petty" officials/officers who were subordinate to such major officials as the steward of sheriff. The petty officers were the assistants to the senior officials.
    The senior officers of the early British warships, such as the Boatswain, Gunner and Carpenter, also had assistants or "mates." Since the early seamen knew petty officers in their home villages they used the term to describe the minor officials aboard their ships. A ship's Captain or Master chose his own Petty Officers who served at his pleasure. At the end of a voyage or whenever the ship's crew was paid off and released the Petty Officers lost their positions and titles. There were Petty Officers in the British navy in the Seventeenth Century and perhaps earlier but the rank did not become official until 1808.
    Petty Officers were important members of our Navy right from its beginnings and were also appointed by their ship's Captain. They did not have uniforms or rank insignia, and they usually held their appointments only while serving on the ship whose Captain had selected them.
    Petty Officers in our Navy got their first rank insignia in 1841 when they began wearing a sleeve device showing an eagle perched on an anchor. Some Petty Officers wore the device on their left arms while others wore it on their right. All wore the same device. Specialty or rating marks did not appear officially until 1866 but they seem to have been in use for several years previously. Regulations sometimes serve to give formal status to practices already well established.
    In 1885 the Navy recognized it three classes of Petty Officers -- first, second and third -- and in the next year let them wear rank insignia of chevrons with the points down under a spread eagle and rating mark. The eagle faced left instead of right as it does today.
    The present Petty Officer insignia came about in 1894 when the Navy established the Chief Petty Officer rank and gave him the three chevrons with arc and eagle. The first, second and third class Petty Officers also began wearing the insignia they do today.

Ping
    To transmit on active sonar, or the sound or signal made by same

Ping Jockey
    Sonar Technician - Shipboard Rating is STG, Submarine Rating is STS.

Piping
    Boatswains have been in charge of the deck force since the days of sail. Setting sails, heaving lines, and hosting anchors required coordinated team effort and boatswains used whistle signals to order the coordinated actions. When visitors were hoisted aboard or over the side, the pipe was used to order "Hoist Away" or "Avast heaving." In time, piping became a naval honor on shore as well as at sea.

Piping Hot
    Originally, meals were announced aboard ship by piping (blowing a call on the boatswain’s pipe). If a meal is piping hot, it has just been served and is therefore hot.

Plank Owner
    A member of the original commissioning crew of a ship.

Play Hob
    Middle English in origin.  Abbreviated nick-name for 'Robert' the name given to a mischievous ghost or goblin.  Often referred to as 'hobgoblin'.  It became a term for a series of troublesome accidents of mysterious origins.

Pogy Bait
    "Pogy" is an old coastal Indian (Algonquian) term for a small fish of the herring or sardine variety.  Cabin boys, young midshipmen, and boys who served as "powder monkeys" were known as "pogies" to the older members of the crew.  Thus candy, sweetmeats, cookies, and other treats were known to attract them.

Pooped
    What happened to any unfortunate seaman caught standing on the aft, or poop, deck when a giant wave from a following sea crashed down.

Port and starboard
    1) Port and starboard are shipboard terms for left and right, respectively. Confusing those two could cause a ship wreck. In Old England, the starboard was the steering paddle or rudder, and ships were always steered from the right side on the back of the vessel. Larboard referred to the left side, the side on which the ship was loaded. So how did larboard become port? Shouted over the noise of the wind and the waves, larboard and starboard sounded too much alike. The word port means the opening in the "left" side of the ship from which cargo was unloaded. Sailors eventually started using the term to refer to that side of the ship. Use of the term "port" was officially adopted by the U.S. Navy by General Order, 18 February 1846.

    2) On old Viking ships, the right side was called the “steerboard” side, because the heavy board for steering was secured on the right side. Gradually, “steerboard” was corrupted to “starboard”.  The left side of the ship was called the “Load board” side, because when heavy steering board prevented loading on the right. “Load Board” sounded so much like “starboard”. So the U. S. adopted the term “port”.

    3) Larboard signified the left side on board ship in the United States Navy until about 1846.  It is recorded that in that year the word was passed on board an American man-of-war cruising off the coast of Africa: "Do you hear there fore and aft?  The word "larboard" is to be forever dripped in the United States Navy, and the word "port" is substituted.  Any man using the word 'larboard' will be punished."
     The word "port" came from the British Navy from the orders of the Portuguese Tagus River pilots.

Port and Starboard Watches
    Watch schedule where one stands 6 (or four or eight) hours on, the same amount of time off watch, then back on watch.

Port Hole
    1) The word "port hole" originated during the reign of Henry VI of England (1485). King Henry insisted on mounting guns too large for his ship and the traditional methods of securing these weapons on the forecastle and aftcastle could not be used.
    A French shipbuilder named James Baker was commissioned to solve the problem. He put small doors in the side of the ship and mounted the cannon inside the ship. These doors protected the cannon from weather and were opened when the cannon were to be used. The French word for "door" is "porte" which was later Anglicized to "port" and later went on to mean any opening in the ship's side, whether for cannon or not.

    2) King Henry VI of England ordered his shipbuilder, James Baker, to install heavy guns on his ships.  Too heavy to be stable on the upper decks, Baker pierced the sides of his ships and used the French idea of mounting watertight doors over them to close the openings when the guns were not in use.  This door was called a port.  Later on, it was discovered that round holes distributed the strains of a ship's motion evenly around it, rather than making weak points at the joints and corners.

Posh
    This comes from the days of Britain's East India Company.  Aboard the ships that sailed from England to India, the most comfortable quarters were found on the PORT side of the ship going OUT to India (Because the sun rose in the east, thus warming that side of the ship first, and setting in the west, which cooled that area earlier from the heat of the day).  Returning from India to England, the more comfortable quarters were now on the opposite side of the ship for the same reason, or STARBOARD HOME.  Naturally, these quarters were much more expensive for passengers traveling by ship.  Thus, only the more wealthy families could afford to have the initials P.O.S.H. (Port Out, Starboard Home) entered into the ship's log book when they made their reservations.

Purser
    Paymaster.  This comes from the medieval word, 'bursar', who was the nobleman's keeper of the cash.  Hence the word, 'disburse', when referring to payments or salaries to the crew.

Quarters
    The two after parts of a ship, behind the mainmast on each side of the center-line were referred to as the "quarters".  It was where the officers and wealthy passengers had their living spaces.  It also became a rough method of telling direction by dividing a ship in four parts from its center.  Thus, when the wind was blowing "from the port quarter", it meant the wind was blowing from about 225 degrees relative, or 45 degrees away from 180 degrees relative, which is dead astern.

Quarter-deck
    1) Originally it was the after half of the upper deck which was half the length of the ship and usually located between the poop and the mainmast. It was normally reserved for officers. Eventually the term was used for any area used for normal ingress and egress to the ship.

    2) That part of the upper deck of a ship which is abaft, or just to the rear, of the mainmast, or where the mainmast would be if the ship was a sailing ship.  In very early English ships in medieval times, it was where a small religious shrine was set up, and so every man going by would take off his hat in respect or salute it as he passed. This was the origin for saluting the Quarter-deck which still persists today.  It also became the place where the men were gathered to muster and receive orders from the officers up on the raised, or "poop" deck in the stern area.  This was also the origin of the "Watch, Quarter, and Station Bill, and also the origin of "Beat to Quarters", when drums were used to summon the crew to battle stations.

Quartermaster
    The Quarter-deck area was originally officers' country, and enlisted men were not allowed there unless called for. However, seasoned, trusted seamen were allowed up there as helmsmen.  Because they had to know how to steer a given course, they also had to learn how to read a compass and then care for it as well.  So too with the ship's chronometer, and then gradually the sextant, charts, and other navigating equipment.  Eventually, selected sailors became "masters" of the Quarter-deck area, particularly when it came to navigation.

Quay
    A wharf of open pile construction which is intended for the mooring of vessels on one side only as the other is adjacent to or parallel to the shore.

Radar
    An acronym standing for "radio detecting and ranging."

Rain Locker
    Shower.

Rank and File
    The generic man in ranks. Comes from the terms for a military formation, where a rank is a row (crosswise) and a file is a column (lengthwise) within the formation.

Rating Badges (also "Distinguishing Marks")
    In 1841, insignia called "distinguishing marks" were first prescribed as part of the official uniform. An eagle and anchor emblem, forerunner of the rating badge, was the first distinguishing mark. In 1886 rating badges were established, and some 15 specialty marks were also provided to cover the various ratings. On 1 April 1893, Petty Officers were reclassified and the rating of Chief Petty Officer was established. Until 1949 rating badges were worn on the right or left sleeve, depending on whether the person concerned was on the starboard or port watch. Since February 1948, all distinguishing marks have been worn on the left sleeve between the shoulder and elbow.

Rendering Honors
    Originally, the one who saluted first rendered himself or his ship powerless for the time it took to render honors.  In henry VII's period, the average time to fire a gun was twice an hour.  Under sail, passing ships lowered topsails.  The point of the sword on the ground at the finish of the sword salute rendered the saluter powerless for the time being.  the salute executed today by "present arms" originally mean to present for taking.

Right Arm Rates
    Established in 1841 and disestablished 2 April 1949, originally signified men of the Seaman branch. During WWII these rates included Boatswains Mate, Turret Captain, Signalman, Gunners Mate, Fire Controlman, Quartermaster, Mineman, and Torpedomans Mate. Other ratings wore rates on the left sleeve.

Rigmarole
    From the days of King Edward III of England.  He conquered much of Scotland and forced the Scottish nobles to swear obedience, fealty and allegiance to him, personally.  They signed their names on individual sheets of parchment that were delivered to each one of them, which were then taken back to London.  Once there, they were all sewn together to form a scroll, or 'roll' ('Calling the roll', or 'Roll call' derives from this).  Derided with scorn by rebellious Scotsmen, it was referred to as, "a roll of rags", and the traitorous or weak men who signed it were known as "ragmen".  Then it was referred to as the "Ragmen's Roll", and gradually became the "Rig-ma-role", and now refers to any type of coercive, unpopular, and intrusive government activity.

Rope (vs. line)
    Natural or synthetic, woven, braided, or twisted (or some combinations), it is called ‘rope’ as long as it is on the spool. As soon as you unroll a piece and cut it off, it becomes ‘line.’

Ropeyarn Sunday
    Early liberty or an early knockoff of ship’s work. Refers to the days of sail, when Sunday was generally a day for "make and mend," i.e. personal admin. rather than ship’s work.

Round Robin
    The custom of rebellious or mutinous sailors of signing their names to a protesting letter or petition by signing their names radiating outward like the spokes of a wheel.  This way, there would be no leading names on the list.  Some scholars say that this is also the origin of the term, 'ring-leader' .

Route
     Said to be Dutch in origin. Dutch Pilots and Navigators kept their own separate logs (They were called "Reuters", and often handled in great secrecy by merchant companies) from the captain's log.  Here, they recorded copious notes and descriptions of landmarks, weather and sea conditions, tides, hazards, and even interviews with local seamen, fishermen and other skippers along the way. This was known as a "Reuters Log" or "Reuters Guide", which was invaluable to other ships to find a destination.

 
Sally Ship
    1) "Sally ship" was not a ship but a method of loosening a vessel that ran aground from the mud holding her fast. In the days before sophisticated navigation equipment, ships ran aground much more often than today. A grounded ship could be freed with little or no hull damage if she could be rocked out of her muddy predicament.
    To free her, the order was given to "sally ship". The crew gathered in a line along one side and then ran from port to starboard and back and forth until the vessel began to roll. Often the rolling broke the mud's suction and she could be pulled free and gotten underway.
    The original sense of sally is '(of troops) to rush forth from a besieged place against the enemy'. The main figurative sense is the broadened use 'to set out, as on an excursion; venture'.

    2) French in origin.  From "sally" to rush forward.  In the days of sail, when a ship ran aground or touched bottom at low tide, it was possible to break free by ordering the crew to "sally ship".  They would run from side to side in unison, thus creating a violent rocking motion.

Salutes
    1) The hand salute is the military custom you will learn first and use most while in the military. It is centuries old, and probably originated when men in armor raised their helmet visors so they could be identified. Salutes are customarily given with the right hand, but there are exceptions. A Sailor, whose right arm or hand is encumbered may salute left-handed, while people in the Army or Air Force never salute left-handed.

    2) The hand salute in the American Navy came by way of the British Navy.  It is generally agreed that the salute is the first part of the movements of uncovering.  That there was nothing in the hand is a possible explanation of the British salute with the palm turned out.  From the earliest days of organized military units, the junior has uncovered in addressing or meeting the senior.  Lord St. Vincent, in 1796, promulgated an order to the effect that all officers were to take off their hats when receiving orders from superiors.
    Sketches of Naval Life, written on board the USS Constitution, in 1826, gives an account of a Sunday inspection on board that describes the salute of the day.  "The Captain and First Lieutenant, Mr. Vallette, are now on the deck; they pass around and examine every part of it, each man lifting his hat as they pass, or in default of one, catching hold of a lock of hair."
    And in 1849, an officer records: "Some very good officers to show a marked distinction between the petty officers and other part of the crew, have given instructions that on those occasions on which the seamen generally pull off their hats as a mark of respect, such as divisions, muster by the open list, etc., that the petty officers shall then only touch their caps."
    In 1890, the hand salute only was decreed by Queen Victoria because of her displeasure at seeing officers and men stand uncovered when they appeared for royal commendation.
    In the United States Navy, officers in the open uncover only for divine services.  Men uncover when at "mast" for reports and requests, and in officers' country unless under arms or wearing a watch belt.

Saluting the Quarterdeck
  Some hold that the salute to the quarterdeck is derived from the very early seagoing custom of the respect paid to the pagan altar on board ship, and later to the crucifix and shrine.  Others hold that the custom comes from the early days of the British Navy when all officers who were present on the quarterdeck returned the salute of an individual by uncovering (removing the hat).  The original salute consisted of uncovering.  The salute, touching the hat, to the seat of authority, the quarterdeck, the place nearest the colors, is an old an tradition.

Schooner
    Old Scottish, or Gaelic in origin.  'Scone' meant 'to skip', such as when a flat stone is skipped across the water.  Used to describe small, fast vessels with broad, fin-like sails that stretched fore and aft when rigged, instead of the more traditional ones that went from side-to-side of a ship.  It is reported that it began when Captain Andrew Robinson built the first vessel of this type in Glocester, Massachusetts in 1713. At the time of her launching and first 'sea-trial' in the harbor, a Scottish by-stander exclaimed, "Oh, how she 'Scoons'!".  Captain Robinson took up the remark and applied it to all later vessels of this type.  The spelling is also reported to be based on how the word, 'school' is spelled, which has the same pronunciation.

    An acronym standing for "Self-Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus."

Scuttle
    1) A small opening or hatch with a movable lid in the deck or hull of a ship.
    2) To cut or open one or more holes in a ship's hull in order to sink the vessel.

Scuttlebutt
    1) The cask of drinking water on ships was called a scuttlebutt and since Sailors exchanged gossip when they gathered at the scuttlebutt for a drink of water, scuttlebutt became U.S. Navy slang for gossip or rumors. A butt was a wooden cask which held water or other liquids; to scuttle is to drill a hole, as for tapping a cask.

    2) A “butt” is a cask. To “scuttle” means to make holes in the ship to sink it. A “scuttlebutt” is referred to as a cask with a spigot in its side. Stout casks of oak held the freshwater for drinking. “Scuttlebutt” is also referred to as a rumor, because men and women naturally congregate at drinking fountains, and thus it is where rumors start.

Sea Daddy
    Someone who takes a less-experienced crewmember under his or her wing and expert tutelage. Often, and traditionally, when a CPO takes care of and educates a boot ensign.  Nowadays, known as "Mentoring".

Sea Lawyer
    1) Someone who professes to have significant knowledge of the fine points of the rules and regs. This knowledge is often used for personal gain, or to claim why something cannot be done.

Shanghaied
    Shanghai was the major seaport in China during the Clipper ship days, and had the worst reputation.  It was also a very long journey lasting many weeks and months at sea.  Unpopular with sailors, China-bound captains often had to trick or even outright kidnap men aboard ship to make the voyage.  Thus the term was used to describe anyone making a voyage or performing a task against his will.

Ship's Husband
    Sometimes when a ship is heading for the yards, an old salt says that she is going to her husband now and it causes novices to wonder what he is talking about. A ship's husband was once a widely used term which described the man in charge of the shipyard responsible for the repair of a particular ship. It was not uncommon to hear the sailors of creaky ships lament, Ah, she's been a good ship, lads, but she's needing her husband now. In the course of a ship's life, she may have had more than one husband, but this had little bearing upon her true affections. Tradition has it, her love was saved solely for her sailors.

Shiver Me Timbers
    Timbers were the largest, and therefore the main support beams for the decks and ribs of a ship.  Only violent movements, such as heavy seas or a collision, could cause them to shake.  This term came to be used for any deed or action that was deeply surprising or threatening to a sailor.

Shows his true colors
    Early warships often carried flags from many nations on board in order to elude or deceive the enemy. The rules of civilized warfare called for all ships to hoist their true national ensigns before firing a shot. Someone who finally "shows his true colors" is acting like a man-of-war which hailed another ship flying one flag, but then hoisted their own when they got in firing range.

Sickbay
    1) In the days of sailing ships, it was customary to uncover when entering sick bay, out of respect to the dying and dead. Through modern medicine the sickbay has transformed into a place where people are usually healed and cured, so the custom remains. As in any hospital, silence is maintained.

    2) Ships hospitals were originally known as "Sick Berths," but as the were generally located in the round sterns of the old battle wagons, their contours suggested a "bay," and the latter name was given them.

    3) In the early sailing ships, the bow area was the roomiest area below decks available to the crew, taking the shape of a bay when viewed from inside.  It was the custom for the surgeon to use this area to do his work, especially if battle caused the need to have enough room for many men to be stretched out at once for his attention.  It has now become the term for the ship's medical area on the vessel, regardless of its actual location.

Side Boys
    1) Tending the side with side boys, as we know it in modern practice, originated long time ago. It was customary in the days of sail to hold conferences on the flagships both when at sea and in open roadstead; also, officers were invited to dinner on other ships while at sea, weather permitting. Sometimes the sea was such that visitors were hoisted aboard in boatswain's chairs. Members of the crew did the hoisting, and it is from the aid they rendered in tending the side that the custom originated of having a certain number of men always in attendance. Some have reported the higher the rank, the heavier the individual; therefore, more side boys.

    2) Side boys are a part of the quarterdeck ceremonies when an important person or Officer comes on board or leaves a ship. Large ships have side boys detailed to the quarterdeck from 08:00 to sunset. When the side is piped by the BMOW, from two to eight side boys, depending on the rank of the Officer, will form a passageway at the gangway. They salute on the first note of the pipe and finish together on the last note.
    In the days of sail, it was not uncommon for the Commanding Officers of ships sailing in convoy to convene aboard the flagship for conferences. It was also not uncommon for COs to invite each other to dine aboard their vessels. Unfortunately, there was no easy way to bring visitors on and off a ship while underway. And there was no dignified may for a high ranking officer to scurry up or down a rope ladder hanging down the side of a ship.
    Often the boatswain's chair, a rope and wood sling, would be used to hoist the guest onto and off the ship. The Boatswain's Mate would control the heaving by blowing the appropriate commands with a whistle known as a Boatswain's Pipe. The number of "strong backs" needed to bring the visitor aboard depended upon the size of the "load" being hoisted. Somewhere along the line, it was noted that the more senior the visitor's rank, the more Sailors were needed to "man the side." Over time, the need to hoist visitors onto and off of Navy ships went away, but the custom of mustering the Sideboys and piping distinguished visitors aboard ship remains.

Skedaddle
    To sneak away from a working party.

Skipper
    1) Commanding Officer. Apparently from the Dutch "Schipper,", which means, essentially, "he who ships."

    2) Derived from the Scandinavian word "schiffe," meaning ships, or the Dutch word "schipper," meaning captain.

Skylarking
    1) Originally, skylarking described the antics of young Navy men who climbed and slid down the backstays for fun. Since the ancient word "lac" means "to play" and the games started high in the masts, the term was skylacing." Later, corruption of the word changed it to "skylarking." Skylarking is a familiar term to most Sailors and a popular pastime for others. Today, it is generally looked upon with disfavor both onboard ship and ashore.

    2) "Larking" meant to fool around and play.  High-spirited sailors often did this while aloft among the sails and out of the immediate reach of their officers.

Sleeping Dictionary
    A member of the local population who teaches a sailor the local language (among other things), usually in exchange for room and board.

Slipped His Moorings
    Originally, it referred to a sailor's death.  A ship or boat that was carelessly or loosely tied to a dock would sometimes slip its moorings at high tide during the night, since the vessel's rise would pull the loops of the ropes right up over the posts they were tied to.  As the tide receded, the boat would drift away with it and right on out to sea.  In the morning it would be gone, after disappearing mysteriously during the night.  Sailors fatally ill would often pass away during the night in the same manner.  In more recent times, it referred to a careless or mis-directed sailor who was 'drifty',

Slops
    The name given to ready-made clothing carried in old warships and issued to seamen on repayment against their pay when drawn.  The name comes from the old English word 'sloppe', meaning breeches. 'Sloppy Clothing' originally referred only to the baggy trousers worn by seamen, since the ship's tailor made them all extra-large to ensure they could be worn by anyone.

Slush Fund
    A small (usually illegal) fund raised on ships from the misappropriation and sale of grease, rope, rags, and odds-and-ends to other ships or local citizens ashore.  This was used to pay for small, often shady expenses, like an extra rum ration.  This originally comes from the cook's habit of skimming the grease off the meat as he boiled it (Cooks often had the nick-name of 'slushy' for this reason).  He would sell the grease in small pots to the sailors to spread on their biscuits when the butter had turned rancid or was used up.  Or, he would sell it to the ship's purser to make into candle wax.  Sea cooks were usually disabled or elderly seamen with wages much lower than a prime sailor's...

Smoking lamp
    1) The exact date and origin of the smoking lamp has been lost. However, it probably came into use during the 16th Century when seamen began smoking on board vessels. The smoking lamp was a safety measure. It was devised mainly to keep the fire hazard away from highly combustible woodwork and gunpowder. Most navies established regulations restricting smoking to certain areas. Usually, the lamp was located in the forecastle or the area directly surrounding the galley indicting that smoking was permitted in this area. Even after the invention of matches in the 1830s, the lamp was an item of convenience to the smoker. When particularly hazardous operations or work required that smoking be curtailed, the unlighted lamp relayed the message. "The smoking lamp is lighted" or "the smoking lamp is out' were the expressions indicating that smoking was permitted or forbidden. The smoking lamp has survived only as a figure of speech. When the officer of the deck says "the smoking lamp is out" before drills, refueling or taking ammunition, that is the Navy's way of saying "cease smoking."

    2) In the “old” Navy, crew members were prohibited from using matches. For their convenience, oil lamps were swung in certain parts of the ship so they could light their pipes or cigars.  During routine work, smoking was prohibited. The OOD ordered smoking lamps extinguished.

    3) Many old-time sailors enjoyed a good smoke, just as some do, today.  Lighting up a cigar or pipe was done with the flame of a handy lantern or "lamp" that was kept burning for this purpose.  However, there were times working aloft when smoking would be a distraction or even a hazard (especially when loading or working with gunpowder). Passing the word, "The Smoking Lamp is out" soon became a warning that smoking was to cease no matter where a crewman was, just as passing the word that it was lit often meant that they could take a short break or that it was the end of the working day.

SNAFU
    Situation Normal, All Fouled Up.

Snipe
    Crew members in the engineering rates; someone who works in the engineering spaces and seldom is seen topside when underway. MM's (Machinist's Mates) and BT's (Boiler Technicians) are ultimate snipes. In today's modern gas turbine fleet, also includes GSM (Gas Turbine Specialist, Mechanic), GSE (Gas Turbine Specialist, Electrician), and EN (Engineman). It is believed that true snipes cannot stand direct sunlight or fresh air, must have machine oil in their coffee in order to survive, and get nosebleeds at altitudes above the waterline.

Son of a Gun
    1) In the early days, sailors were permitted to keep their "wives" on board ship.  The term was used to refer to children born alongside the guns of the broadsides.  In fact, the expression questioned the legitimacy of a person.  The old definition of a man-o'-war was:  "Begotten in the galley and born under a gun.  Every hair a rope yarn, every tooth a marline spike; every finger a fish hook and in his blood right good Stockholm tar."
     A British officer commanding a brig off the Spanish coast in 1835 wrote in his diary.  "This day the surgeon informed me that a woman on board had been laboring in child for twelve hours, and if I could see my way to permit the firing of a broadside to leeward, nature would be assisted by the shock.  I complied with the request and she was delivered of a fine male child."  Gunners Mate's to the rescue!

    2) A male child conceived on a man-of-war's gun deck.  There was a time in sailing history when wives, lovers, and ladies of pleasure were permitted on board to entertain the men while in port.  In most cases, -especially during war, crewmen were not permitted to leave the ship for the very plausible fear that they would desert.  Thus were visitors allowed.  Since the only place a couple could find any privacy was between the massive cannons of the ship's armament, the term was applied to the child that resulted.  Purists argue the term should be applied only to the male child that was actually born in these circumstances, since this sometimes occurred as well, but far less often.  A further elaboration states that women experiencing difficulty during child birth were laid next to one of these cannons, which was then fired in the belief that the noise and shock would be enough to hasten the birth.

Sonar
    Sound Navigation Ranging. An acronym for underwater echo-ranging equipment, originally for detecting submarines by small warships.

S.O.S.
    Contrary to popular notion, the letters S.O.S. do not stand for "Save Our Ship" or "Save Our Souls". They were selected to indicate a distress because, in Morse code, these letters and their combination create an unmistakable sound pattern.

Sounding Bells
    By tradition sixteen bells are struck on midnight of New Years... the oldest person on the vessel strikes the first 8 no matter what his rank (enlisted or admiral or whatever) and the second 8 are struck by the youngest person on the vessel.

Spin a Yarn
    Early ropes and lines were made from yarn, which was spun by hand and later spliced or woven into larger sizes or used to repair existing ones.  Leisurely, relaxing work, it required only the use of the hands, and sailors could sit around and tell stories or gossip as they did so ("Ropeyarn Sunday" comes from this, also).  Tales, jokes, and anecdotes became known as "yarns" because of their origins from this activity.

Splice the Main Brace
    1) A sailing ship's rigging was a favorite target during sea battles since by destroying the opponent's ability to maneuver or get away would put you at obvious advantage. Therefore, the first thing tended to after a battle was to repair broken gear, and repair sheets (sails) and braces (lines – improperly, ropes – passing through blocks and holding up sails). It was the custom, after the main braces were properly spliced, to serve grog to the entire crew. Thus, today, after a hard day (or, not so hard day), the phrase has become an invitation to have a drink.

    2) In the Royal Navy, when it became time to issue the rum ration, the word was jokingly passed to "splice the Main Brace", an indication of how important liquor was to the crew.  It is used today whenever sailors go ashore and into a drinking establishment.

Squared Away
    1) Originally, to "square away" meant to trim a ship’s sails to put her before the wind (i.e. get underway). Today, it means a ship that looks good, maneuvers smartly, etc., or refers to a sailor who is capable and smart in appearance and action.

    2) Squared Away - Square-rigged sailing ships would set the backs of their sails directly into the wind for their best speed.  A ship standing out smartly from   harbor with every sail thus set presented a neat, purposeful appearance.  The term soon became applied as a compliment to any competent sailor.  In particular one with a neat appearance.

    3) This term for being finished with one task and ready for a new one came from a square-rigged ship with her yards braces so the ship was said to run "squarely" ahead of the wind.

Square Meal
    Meals on a ship were dished up on a square board that served as a plate.  The board's shape and the regularity of meals suggested the concept of three "square" meals a day.

Starboard
     Before the rudder was invented, sailing ships were guided by a large oar or "steering board" set towards the stern of the ship, usually on the right side.  To avoid damage from the dock or pier, the ship was tied up on its left side while the ship was in port.  Thus the left side of the ship became the "port" side, and the right the "starboard." This soon became known as the "star‑board", and designated the right‑hand side of the ship.  When in Port, the vessel would tie up on its left side, away from the steering oar; and so thus became known as the "Port" side.

Stars
    First approved on line officers uniforms on 28 January 1864. All regulations since 1873 have specified that one ray would point downward toward the gold stripe on the sleeve. The reason for this is unknown.
    Introduced for E-8 & E-9 with the creation of SCPO and MCPO. The reasoning for stars pointed one ray down is unknown, however, indications point to following the line officers standard.

Stars and Stripes on Jumper Uniforms
    On 18 January 1876, Rear Admiral Stephen B. Luce recommended a collar with stars and stripes as a substitute for the plain collar used on the frocks of seamen. Three stripes on the collar was proposed for all grades, with the stripes on the cuffs to indicated grade. One stripe for E-1, etc.

Stateroom
    Officers' quarters aboard a warship and/or passenger cabins aboard a passenger liner.  It is derived from the paddlewheel riverboats that steamed up and down the major rivers and waterways of the United States during the 1800's. The first-class cabins aboard were named after various states in the union (New York, Virginia, Pennsylvania, etc).

Steel Beach
    Barbecue on the flight deck or other weather deck. Often hosted by a department to give the cooks a break.

Stranded
    'Strand' is used to describe the long, narrow strip of beach that divides the sea from the land, and often is used to describe a long peninsula.   Unlucky sailors left on the beach by shipwrecks or by dishonest captains who did not want to pay their wages when the voyage was over were thus 'stranded'

Swallow the Anchor
     To retire or be put ashore after a life at sea.

Taken Aback
    One of the hazards faced in days of sailing ships has been incorporated into English to describe someone who has been jolted by unpleasant news. We say that person has been "taken aback." The person is at a momentary loss; unable to act or even to speak. A danger faced by sailing ships was for a sudden shift in wind to come up (from a sudden squall), blowing the sails back against the masts, putting the ship in grave danger of having the masts break off and rendering the ship totally helpless. The ship was taken aback.

Taps
    The word "taps" is derived from the Dutch word taptoe, or time to close up all the taps and taverns in the garrisoned towns.  In a volume entitled, The Military Guide to Young Officers, by Thomas Simes, reprinted in Philadelphia, in 1776 there are instruction for the officer of the guard.  "The tat-too is generally best at nine o'clock at night in the summer and eight in the winter.  It is performed by the Drum Major, and all the drummers and fifers of that regiment which gave a captain of the main guard that day.  The tat-too is the signal given for the soldiers to retire to their barracks or quarters, to put out their fire and candle and go to bed.  The public houses are at the same time, to shut their doors, and sell no more liquor that night."
    A British military dictionary published in 1876 states, "The term Post is given to the bulging which precedes the tattoo.  This is the first part, the last part that follows it is the last Post."  The last post is sounded on the trumpet or bugle at British military funerals.
    When the American Navy adopted the custom of sounding taps at funerals seems to be unknown.  Accounts of military funerals on board the Constitution in 1846 record the "Dead March from Saul" as the only music at a burial at sea.  Muffled drums are mentioned in addition to the "Dead March" at the burial of Commodore Claxton at Valparaiso in 1841.

    A bit of trivia about TAPS is that there is some disagreement as to its origin.  So, instead of an explanation and maybe some history, I only supply some links, and let the reader decide what they wish to believe about it.

Tar or Jack Tar
    1) Tar, a slang term for a Sailor, has been in use since at least 1676. The term "Jack tar" was used by the 1780s. Early Sailors wore overalls and broad-brimmed hats made of tar-impregnated fabric called tarpaulin cloth. The hats, and the Sailors who wore them, were called tarpaulins, which may have been shortened to tars.

    2) Pitch or tar was often used by British sailors to keep their hair from blowing into their eyes during heavy weather (The modern kerchief of a bluejacket's uniform was originally tied around his forehead to keep the tar from dripping into his eyes.  The back flap of his jumper was originally meant to protect his uniform from tar dripping off of the back of his head).  It also refers to 'tarpaulin', which was an early form of water-proof cloth made by soaking it in a mixture of pine-pitch distillate and resin.  It became a nick-name for sailors in general.

Tarpaulin Muster

     The custom of a crew or watch section pooling their money for a night's fun ashore or some such enterprise.  It comes from the early days of sail when a spare hatch covering (tarpaulin) cloth or piece of sail was spread out on the deck, and every man on board going ashore was required to empty his pockets before going over the side.  The entire proceeds thus collected were totaled by the senior man present and divided equally among the shore party, or else paid in total to a single bar or tavern where the group intended to frolic.

Tart
     In the old sailing days, left-over flour was often rolled and pressed on a hot grill, with jams from stored fruits ladled into the middle and then folded over, grilled, and served as a hot, simple desert or quick treat for the crew (Captains often had their own personal store of such fruits, and sometimes used them as a reward for good behavior or for a successful action). Because of age and storage, fruits often had a 'sharp' taste to them.  It became a nick‑name for a prostitute or young lady of easy virtue.

Tattoo
     There are two meanings to this word, far different in their origins and application.  One comes from old Dutch tavern keepers, who would say, "tap toe" when the town drummer or bugler would sound the call for everyone to return to their quarters for the night.  It meant, "The tap", or bar, is "to" (To be closed). This is from the early days of gunpowder and walled cities, especially in the country of Flanders, when the night watch would be called by the bugle to go out to take up their duties,  To English soldiers stationed in Flanders or Holland at the time, it sounded like, "tattoo', and became utilized to describe the next to the next to the last bugle call for the night.  The final bugle call was "taps", which meant that all businesses and taverns were now shut down for the night, and everyone except the night watch should be at home or in their barracks.

     The second definition of 'tattoo' concerns the art of decorating the skin by tiny punctures of indelible ink or injecting it just below the skin's surface.  Some of the earliest practitioners of this art were the Polynesian Islanders of the South Pacific. Their word for this practice was 'tatau'. Early western sailors did this at first with a cross to identify the wearer as a Christian, in case he was lost at sea and his body later recovered* (*A further elaboration states that this is also why some sailors used to wear golden ear rings.  -It was meant to compensate the finders of his body for giving him a Christian burial and having a priest pray over his grave).  Quite naturally, it became a popular art form in its own right.

Tending the Side
    Piping as a ceremony with side boys is a custom evolving from the days when visitors were hoisted aboard by use of the boatswain's chair.  The pipe was used for the commands "hoist away" and "avast heaving."  Members of the crew of the host ship did the hoisting.  It is from the aid they rendered in tending the side that the custom originated of having a certain number of men (side boys) present.  In time it became a courtesy for high ranking officers and diplomatic officials to honored by sideboys and piping ceremony.

Thirteen Buttons on Trousers
    There is no relationship between the 13 buttons on the trousers and the 13 original colonies. Before 1894, the trousers had only seven buttons and in the early 1800's they had 15 buttons. It wasn't until the broad fall front was enlarged that the 13 buttons were added to the uniform and only then to add symmetry of design.

Three Mile Limit
    The original three-mile limit was the recognized distance from a nation's shore over which that nation had jurisdiction. This border of international waters or the "high seas" was established because, at the time this international law was established, three miles was the longest range of any nation's most powerful guns, and therefore, the limit from shore batteries at which they could enforce their laws. (International law and the 1988 Territorial Sea Proclamation established the "high seas" border at the 12-mile limit.)

Tickled to Death
    Oddly enough, though not specifically a Navy term, this has Chinese Origins.  A method of torture and execution in ancient China was to tickle the bare feet of a strapped-down prisoner with a goose feather.  This would cause the victim to literally laugh himself to death through exhaustion.

Titivate
    Clean up, or make shipshape.

"To Be Three Sheets in the Wind"
    1) In the days of sailing ships, this is a phrase which refers to the lines used to control the sails of sailing vessels. When these sheets are cast to the wind (let go), it would cause the old sailing ships to shudder and stagger. The resulting track would be the same as that of a drunken Sailor, out of control, and hence "three sheets in the wind."

    2) The word sheet in our expression is the nautical sheet, meaning 'a rope, chain, etc. used to secure or adjust the sail of a ship'. This word is also ultimately from Old English, a shortening of sheet-line, that is, 'sail-rope', with the sheet the same as our above sheet in the sense 'a sail'.
    The original form of the expression was three sheets in the wind (not "to"), which literally means 'with the sail completely unsecured', and thus flapping about, and with the boat itself thus unsteady. (Sails can be secured with varying numbers of sheets, but the square-rigged boats used at the time when the expression became current usually had three sheets.) There are many other nautical expressions for drunkenness, such as "with decks awash," "half seas over," and "over the bay," but few of them have spread so thoroughly to the mainstream.
    Three sheets in the wind is first found in the early 1820s in both British and American sources. There are many other variants ("a sheet in the wind," meaning 'somewhat drunk', etc.), and the most common form today is three sheets to the wind.

    3) If the "sheets: (the rope lines used to control the sail) are loos on a fully rigged ship, the sails flap and flutter in the breeze - and are said to be "in the wind".  A ship in this condition appears "drunk" because it shudders and staggers in the water, aimlessly floating.

Toe the line
    1) The space between each pair of deck planks in a wooden ship was filled with a packing material called "oakum" and then sealed with a mixture of pitch and tar. The result, from afar, was a series of parallel lines a half-foot or so apart, running the length of the deck. Once a week, as a rule, usually on Sunday, a warship's crew was ordered to fall in at quarters -- that is, each group of men into which the crew was divided would line up in formation in a given area of the deck. To insure a neat alignment of each row, the Sailors were directed to stand with their toes just touching a particular seam.
    Another use for these seams was punitive. The youngsters in a ship, be they ship's boys or student officers, might be required to stand with their toes just touching a designated seam for a length of time as punishment for some minor infraction of discipline, such as talking or fidgeting at the wrong time. A tough captain might require the miscreant to stand there, not talking to anyone, in fair weather or foul, for hours at a time. Hopefully, he would learn it was easier and more pleasant to conduct himself in the required manner rather than suffer the punishment.
    From these two uses of deck seams comes our cautionary word to obstreperous youngsters to "toe the line."

    2) The main meaning of this phrase is 'to conform strictly to a rule, command, etc.'. For example, "Anyone who doesn't toe the line can expect to meet the mayor in court, where, as it turns out, he has never lost a suit" (U.S. News & World Report, 1996).
    The toe in question is the one at the front of one's feet. The literal meaning of the phrase is 'to stand with one's toes touching a line', and specifically to do so at or as at the start of a running race.
    Toe the line is an Americanism first recorded in the early nineteenth century. It is found in several variants, of which toe the mark is the only one you'd be likely to encounter.

Tonnage (Tunnage)
    Today tonnage refers to a ship's displacement in the water or the gross pounds of cargo it is capable of carrying. In the days of sail this was not so. Tonnage was spelled "tunnage" and referred to the number of "tuns" a ship could carry. A "tun" was a barrel normally used for transporting wine and tunnage specified the number of barrels that would fit in the ship's hold.

Took the wind out of his sails
    Often we use "took the wind out of his sails" to describe getting the best of an opponent in an argument. Originally it described a battle maneuver of sailing ships. One ship would pass close to its adversary and on its windward side. The ship and sails would block the wind from the second vessel, causing it to lose headway. Losing motion meant losing maneuverability and the ability to carry on a fight.

Turn a Blind Eye
    Admiral Lord Nelson of the British Navy lost his left eye during a battle while still a Captain (At Tenerife).  Later on, while a junior admiral or Commodore, he was in a battle (Copenhagen) under the over-all command of Fleet Admiral Earl St. Vincent.  During the fighting, Vice Admiral Parker sent a signal to Nelson to get closer to him.  Nelson, however, had seen a gap in the enemy battle line, and knew he could win the battle if he sailed into it instead, thus splitting the enemy fleet.  Rather than flagrantly disobeying orders, he simply held up a telescope to his blind eye and said, "I don't see the signal," and thus went on to win the battle. Since that time, this term is used when a high-ranking official chooses not to see a situation  - If it's for the greater good, of course.

Under the Weather
    The bow of the ship that comes under the constant beating of the sea, or "under the weather", is where sailors below deck were most likely to become seasick.  The phrase evolved to indicate feeling ill.

Under Way
    Sometimes seen as "under weigh." The term refers to a ship which is not physically connected to solid ground, i.e. neither moored, anchored, nor aground. Often confused with "MAKING WAY (q.v.)," though legally very different.

Wardroom
    The Wardroom originally was known as the Wardrobe Room, a place where officers kept their spare wearing apparel. It was also the space where any loot secured from enemy ships, was stored. In an effort to have some privacy on a crowded ship, officers would sometimes take their meals in the Wardrobe Room. Today, the wardroom aboard ship is where officers take their meals, relax, and socialize.

Watch
    1) A certain portion of ship's company, appointed to stand a given length of time.
    2) A division of time on board ship. There are seven watches in a day reckoning from 12 M. (2400) round through the 24 hours, five of them being of four hours each and the two others, called dog watches, of two hours each, viz. from 4 (1600) to 6 (1800) and from 6 (1800) to 8 P.M. (2000).

Weather Deck
    Literally, any deck of a ship which is exposed to the weather, i.e. outside the skin of the ship.

Wetting Down
    A U.S. Navy tradition executed by an officer upon his promotion.  It's based on the fact that the gold striping indicating rank on the Dress Uniform tarnishes with exposure to salt air.  When an officer was promoted and added a new stripe to his sleeve, the new stripe looked out of place due to it's brightness, and told everyone who saw it that the wearer had only recently attained this rank.  Therefore, the uniform with the new stripe was soaked in a bucket of salt water - a ‘wetting down’.  A joking variation of this custom was for seniors to catch him unawares and splash him with buckets of seawater to perform the same purpose.  In typical U.S. Navy fashion, this developed into an opportunity for someone to buy someone else a drink or to have a party.

White Hat
    In 1852 a white cover was added to the soft visorless blue hat. In 1866 a white sennet straw hat was authorized as an additional item. During the 1880's the white "sailors hat" appeared as a low rolled brim high-domed item made of wedge shaped pieces of canvas to replace the straw hat. The canvas was eventually replaced by cotton as a cheaper more comfortable material. Many complaints on the quality and construction led to modifications ending in the currently used white hat.

Whole Nine Yards, The
    While it is universally agreed that “the whole nine yards” means “all of it” or “a full measure”, there is disagreement concerning the origin of the phrase.  No one knows for certain, but various sources claim that it came from:

- in the days of large sailing ships, when each of three masts had three top supports – called yards, or yardarms – for a square canvas sail.  When the ship was under full sail, the sailors had loosed “the whole nine yards”.
- the size of the bomb bay – nine square yards – in a WWII B-52 bomber.  When the plane was carrying its full capacity of bombs, it had the whole nine yards.
- the length of the machine gun bullet belt on a WWII Royal Air Force Spitfire.
- Colonial times, when a full bolt of fabric was 17” wide and nine yards long.  If a garmet required the tailor or dressmaker to use the whole bolt – a very expensive expenditure – it was said that the purchaser had “gone the whole nine yards”.
- The construction industry, where a full load of concrete in a cement truck equals nine cubic yards.

Windfall
    In the days of King George III, a common decree was that any tree greater than 24" in diameter 'belonged to the king'.  In other words, reserved exclusively for building materials for ships of the Royal Navy.  It was forbidden to cut them down by commoners.  However, if a big tree was felled by natural causes, such as a windstorm, then it was free and available for use by anyone.  Thus a 'windfall' became applied to any unexpected stroke of fortune.

Worth His Salt
    In the days of the Roman Empire, soldiers were paid with bags of salt, or their 'salarium' (The term, 'salary' is derived from this) which they in turn would exchange with locals for goods and services.  Thus any man who did his job well was worth what was paid to him.

XO
    Executive Officer. Second-in-command of a vessel.

Yacht
    Dutch in origin.  A shortened version of 'jaghtschip', or 'chase ship'.  A small, light, and fast craft, originally intended for coastal patrol, quick transport of passengers, or raiding in coastal waters, since the design was not meant to carry great amounts of cargo or stores.  It eventually became used to describe privately owned vessels of the wealthy class, since they had little or no commercial value, and thus were meant for pleasure trips only.

Yankee
    1) Americans are known by their nicknames from Hong Kong to Timbuktu; one of the most widely used is "yankee." Its origin is uncertain, but one belief is that it was given to us by the early Dutch.
    Early American sea captains were known but not revered for their ability to drive a hard bargain. Dutchmen, who were also regarded as extremely frugal, jokingly referred to the hard to please Americans as "Yankers" or wranglers. The nom de plume persists to this day.

    2) Among the myriad theories are several involving American Indian origins. It has been suggested that Yankee came from the Cherokee word eankke, 'slave, coward' , or from the name of a tribe of Massachusetts Indians, the Yankoos, 'invincible ones'.
    The most persistent theory in the 19th century originated with the Rev. John Heckewelder in 1819. He wrote that Yankee resulted from the American Indians' attempts to pronounce the word English. James Fenimore Cooper was a proponent of this theory and referred to it in The Deerslayer in 1841.
    In Knickerbocker's History of New York (1809) Washington Irving wrote that Yankee came from a Mais-Tschusaeg (Massachusetts) word yanokies, 'silent men'. Irving was joking, but some people took him seriously.
    Another hoax appeared in the Monthly Review and Boston Anthology in 1810 in a letter that was supposedly written by Noah Webster. It claimed that Yankee came from a Persian word jenghe, 'warlike man or swift horse' and that Genghis Khan meant 'Yankee King'. The piece was actually making fun of Webster's writings on etymology, but not everyone got the joke.
    The word Yankee first appeared in the 17th century when it was used as a nickname in connection with Dutch pirates in the West Indies: "Yankee Duch," "Captain Yankey," and "the pirates Yanky and Jacob." In 1725 the word appeared as a personal name in an estate inventory:  "one negroe man named Yankee." Most scholars now believe that Yankee comes from Dutch although there is disagreement about which Dutch word is the source.
    Random House Webster's College Dictionary suggests that Yankee comes from Jan Kees (or Jan Kaas), 'John Cheese', a nickname for the Dutch. The -s at the end sounded like a plural to English speakers and was dropped. Proponents of this theory believe that the name was first applied to Dutch pirates by the English and later used by the New York Dutch for their Connecticut neighbors. H.L. Mencken favored this explanation, noting that the New Englanders' "commercial enterprise outran their scruples."
    The other popular theory, favored by the OED, is that Yankee comes from Dutch Janke (or possibly Jantje), 'Little John', the diminutive of Jan, which was used as a derisive nickname by either the English or the Dutch in the New England states.
    The earliest recorded use of Yankee as a term for Americans is in a 1758 letter by General James Wolfe (of Battle of Quebec fame) in which he used the word pejoratively of the American troops assigned to him. In 1775 the British troops used Yankee as a derogatory term for the citizens of Boston. The song Yankee Doodle Dandy was played by the British on their 1775 march to Concord as an insult to the Americans (the original lyrics were bawdy -- "doodle" was a slang word for 'dolt' or 'penis'). After the battles at Lexington and Concord, the Americans adopted the song as their own and taunted the retreating British with it. Yankee thus began to acquire a complimentary sense.

    3) Reported to be Dutch in origin.  Fishing boats from Holland often fished off of the coast of what is now New England.  Indeed, many of the early settlers in New England and New York were Dutch, and so many of them had the common sur-name of 'Jan', the plural form of which was 'Janke'.  Due to the peculiarities of Dutch pronunciation, 'J' is commonly sounded as 'Y' to English speakers.  It has since become broadly applied to any New Englander, and eventually, to any North American.

Zulu Time
    "Zulu" time is that which one might know as "GMT" (Greenwich Mean Time). Our natural concept of time is linked to the rotation of the earth and we define the length of the day as the 24 hours it takes the earth to spin once on its axis.
    As time pieces became more accurate and communication became global, there needed to be a point from which all other world times were based. Since Great Britain was the world's foremost martime power when the concept of latitude and longitude came to be, the starting point for designating longitude was the "prime meridian" which is zero degrees and runs through the Royal Greenwich Observatory, in Greenwich, England, just outside London. As a result, when the concept of time zones was introduced, the "starting" point for calculating the different time zones was/is at the Royal Greenwich Observatory. When it is noon at the observatory, it is five hours earlier (under Standard Time) in Washington, D.C.; six hours earlier in Chicago; seven hours earlier in Denver; and, eight hours earlier in Los Angeles.
    Unfortunately the Earth does not rotate at exactly a constant rate. Due to various scientific reasons and increased accuracy in measuring the earth's rotation, a new timescale, called Coordinated Universal Time (UTC), has been adopted and replaces the term GMT.
    The Navy, as well as civil aviation, uses the letter "Z" (phonetically "Zulu") to refer to the time at the prime meridian. The U.S. time zones are Eastern ["R", "Romeo]; Central ["S", "Sierra"]; Mountain ["T", "Tango"]; Pacific ["U", "Uniform"]; Alaska ["V", "Victor"], and Hawaii ["W", "William"].
    The Department of the Navy serves as the country's official timekeeper, with the Master Clock facility at the U.S. Naval Observatory,
Washington, D.C.

1 MC
    A ship's internal public address system and source of various alarms.

12 O'clock / Noon Report
    A navy ritual. A short speech recited to the ship's captain or his alternate at 1155 every day by the Messenger of the Watch as he hands over the ship's position, fuel and water consumption/status, and magazine temperature reports. "Good afternoon sir, the Officer of the Deck sends his respects and reports the hour of twelve. The chronometer has been wound and compared, request permission to strike eight bells on time, sir."

    At times, boot/gullible seamen, giving the report for the first time, have been known to memorize the speech with the phrase "... wound and compared ... " changed to "... found and repaired ...".