Guide to basic nautical terms

Posted by Team Maria on May 7th, 2019

The basic nautical terms are part of the fundamental vocabulary of sailors and nautical enthusiasts. The nautical has its own lexicon, and we must know the basic nautical terms to be able to navigate naturally in this marine environment. In most of the occasions we will sail together with other people, so the knowledge of the basic nautical terms is fundamental to get a good communication on board. Also here you can know about marine traffic.

There are four basic nautical terms that you should know: those that designate the four sides of the boat. We will refer to the front and back of the ship as bow and stern. We will use the terms starboard and port to talk about the right and left side of the boat, seen from stern to bow. When we talk about the dimensions of a ship, we do not say length and breadth but length and beam. The interior part of the boat is usually called a bathtub. Sometimes we also refer to the windward and leeward expressions. The windward is the part from where the wind comes from a certain point, while the opposite part from where the wind comes from.

Basic nautical terms

Other important basic nautical terms are those that refer to the dimensions of the boats, as well as distances. A nautical foot equals 12 inches, that is, 30.48 centimeters. When we say that a boat has a length of 36 feet, it means that it measures 10.97 meters in length. To refer to the distance between two points we will not use kilometers, but nautical miles.

One nautical mile equals 1,852 kilometers. To measure the speed we do not use the kilometers per hour but we express it in knots. A knot of speed equals one nautical mile per hour. Therefore, when using the basic nautical terms we say that a boat has a cruising speed of 20 knots, we are saying that it is sailing at an equivalent speed of 37 kilometers per hour.

Wind speed is also measured in knots, although we often use the Beaufort scale of wind force, one of the basic nautical terms. For example, force 0 is equivalent to a calm situation with a wind speed less than a knot, while force 3 is equivalent to a weak wind situation with a wind speed between 7 and 10 knots. Force 8 would amount to a storm situation with a wind speed of 34 to 40 knots.

If we talk about sailing boats, the list of basic nautical terms is much more extensive than if we talk about motor boats. To the extent that the dimensions of the sailboat are larger, more devices and components usually carry, so the use of technical vocabulary will be more necessary. In boats, each sail has a name according to the shape of the cloth, since each one has a function and must be distinguished from the others: thus, we will use the mainsail (the largest), but also the genoa, the jib, the spi ... In the event that the force of the wind is very high, we can curl the candles, that is, reduce the surface of the cloth.

The mastery of the basic terms is fundamental

The vocabulary of nautical terms is very extensive, and we could write pages and pages collecting words about navigation, some of which have practically fallen into disuse. Knowing the basic nautical terms is fundamental, not only for a cultural motivation but also because it denotes an exact and precise knowledge of the subject. As you deepen your knowledge of nautical you will expand and strengthen your vocabulary of basic nautical terms.

Some of the fundamental parts of the vessel also have a specific nomenclature that forms part of the basic nautical terms. For example, the skipper will steer the boat using a wheel or a rudder. In the case of a sailboat, to release or hunt the sails the crew members will not use ropes but mooring, sheets, ropes, halyards