Over the Barrel –
\nThe most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The
\nunfortunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over the barrel of a deck
\ncannon.<\/p>\n
To Know the Ropes –
\nThere was miles and miles of cordage in the rigging of a square rigged
\nship. The only way of keeping track of and knowing the function of all of
\nthese lines was to know where they were located. It took an
\nexperienced seaman to know the ropes.<\/p>\n
Dressing Down –
\nThin and worn sails were often treated with oil or wax to renew their
\neffectiveness. This was called “dressing down”. An officer or sailor who
\nwas reprimanded or scolded received a dressing down.<\/p>\n
Footloose –
\nThe bottom portion of a sail is called the foot. If it is not secured, it is
\nfootloose and it dances randomly in the wind.<\/p>\n
Booby Hatch –
\nAboard ship, a booby hatch is a sliding cover or hatch that must be
\npushed away to allow access or passage.<\/p>\n
First Rate –
\nImplies excellence. From the 16th century on until steam powered ships
\ntook over, British naval ships were rated as to the number of heavy
\ncannon they carried. A ship of 100 or more guns was a First Rate
\nline-of-battle ship. Second rates carried 90 to 98 guns; Third Rates, 64 to
\n89 guns; Fourth Rates, 50 to 60 guns. Frigates carrying 20 to 48 guns were
\nfifth and sixth rated.<\/p>\n
Pipe Down –
\nMeans stop talking and be quiet. The Pipe Down was the last signal from
\nthe Boson’s pipe each day which meant “lights out” and “silence”.<\/p>\n
Chock-a-block –
\nMeaning something is filled to capacity or over loaded. If two blocks of
\nrigging tackle were so hard together they couldn’t be tightened further,
\nit was said they were “Chock-a-Block”.<\/p>\n
Leeway –
\nThe weather side of a ship is the side from which the wind is blowing.
\nThe Lee side is the side of the ship sheltered from the wind. A lee shore
\nis a shore that is downwind of a ship. If a ship does not have enough
\n“leeway” it is in danger of being driven onto the shore.<\/p>\n
Windfall –
\nA sudden unexpected rush of wind from a mountainous shore which
\nallowed a ship more leeway.<\/p>\n
Groggy –
\nIn 1740, British Admiral Vernon (whose nickname was “Old Grogram” for
\nthe cloak of Grogram which he wore) ordered that the sailors’ daily ration
\nof rum be diluted with water. The men called the mixture “grog”. A sailor
\nwho drank too much grog was “groggy”.<\/p>\n
Three Sheets to the Wind –
\nA sheet is a rope line which controls the tension on the downwind side
\nof a square sail. If, on a three Amsted fully rigged ship, the sheets of the
\nthree lower course sails are loose, the sails will flap and flutter and are
\nsaid to be “in the wind”. A ship in this condition would stagger and
\nwander aimlessly downwind.<\/p>\n
Pooped –
\nThe poop is the stern section of a ship. To be pooped is to be swamped
\nby a high, following sea.<\/p>\n
As the Crow Flies –
\nWhen lost or unsure of their position in coastal waters, ships would
\nrelease a caged crow. The crow would fly straight towards the nearest
\nland thus giving the vessel some sort of a navigational fix. The tallest
\nlookout platform on a ship came to be know as the crow’s nest.<\/p>\n
Buoyed Up –
\nUsing a buoy to raise the bight of an anchor cable to prevent it from
\nchafing on a rough bottom.<\/p>\n
By and Large –
\nCurrently means in all cases or in any case. From the nautical: by meaning
\ninto the wind and large meaning with the wind: as in, “By and Large the
\nship handled very well.”<\/p>\n
Cut and Run –
\nIf a captain of a smaller ship encountered a larger enemy vessel, he might
\ndecide that discretion is the better part of valor, and so he would order
\nthe crew to cut the lashings on all the sails and run away before the
\nwind. Other sources indicate “Cut and Run” meant to cut the anchor
\ncable and sail off in a hurry.<\/p>\n
In the Offing –
\nCurrently means something is about to happen, as in – “There is a
\nreorganization in the offing.” From the 16th century usage meaning a
\ngood distance from shore, barely visible from land, as in – “We sighted a
\nship in the offing.”<\/p>\n
Skyscraper –
\nA small triangular sail set above the skysail in order to maximize effect in
\na light wind.<\/p>\n
The Bitter End –
\nThe end of an anchor cable is fastened to the bits at the ship’s bow. If
\nall of the anchor cable has been paid out you have come to the bitter
\nend.<\/p>\n
Toe the Line –
\nWhen called to line up at attention, the ship’s crew would form up with
\ntheir toes touching a seam in the deck planking.<\/p>\n
Back and Fill –
\nA technique of tacking when the tide is with the ship but the wind is
\nagainst it.<\/p>\n
Overhaul –
\nTo prevent the buntline ropes from chaffing the sails, crew were sent
\naloft to haul them over the sails. This was called overhauling.<\/p>\n
Slush Fund –
\nA slushy slurry of fat was obtained by boiling or scraping the empty salted
\nmeat storage barrels. This stuff called “slush” was often sold ashore by
\nthe ship’s cook for the benefit of himself or the crew. The money so
\nderived became known as a slush fund.<\/p>\n
Bear Down –
\nTo sail downwind rapidly towards another ship or landmark.<\/p>\n
Under the Weather –
\nIf a crewman is standing watch on the weather side of the bow, he will
\nbe subject to the constant beating of the sea and the ocean spray. He
\nwill be under the weather.<\/p>\n
Overreach –
\nIf a ship holds a tack course too long, it has overreached its turning point
\nand the distance it must travel to reach it’s next tack point is increased.<\/p>\n
Gone By the Board –
\nAnything seen to have gone overboard or spotted floating past the ship
\n(by the board) was considered lost at sea.<\/p>\n
Above Board –
\nAnything on or above the open deck. If something is open and in plain
\nview, it is above board.<\/p>\n
Overwhelm –
\nOld English for capsize or founder.<\/p>\n
Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea –
\nThe devil seam was the curved seam in the deck planking closest to the
\nside of the ship and next to the scupper gutters. If a sailor slipped on
\nthe deck, he could find himself between the devil and the deep blue
\nsea.<\/p>\n
The Devil to Pay –
\nTo pay the deck seams meant to seal them with tar. The devil seam was
\nthe most difficult to pay because it was curved and intersected with the
\nstraight deck planking. Some sources define the “devil” as the
\nbelow-the-waterline-seam between the keel and the the adjoining
\nplanking. Paying the Devil was considered to be a most difficult and
\nunpleasant task.<\/p>\n
Rummage Sale –
\nFrom the French “arrimage” meaning ship’s cargo. Damaged cargo was
\nsold at a rummage sale.<\/p>\n
A Square Meal –
\nIn good weather, crews’ mess was a warm meal served on square wooden
\nplatters.<\/p>\n
Son of a Gun –
\nWhen in port, and with the crew restricted to the ship for any extended
\nperiod of time, wives and ladies of easy virtue often were allowed to live
\naboard along with the crew. Infrequently, but not uncommonly, children were
\nborn aboard, and a convenient place for this was between guns on the gun
\ndeck. If the child’s father was unknown, they were entered in the ship’s log as
\n“son of a gun”.<\/p>\n
Overbearing –
\nTo sail downwind directly at another ship thus “stealing” or diverting the wind
\nfrom his sails.<\/p>\n
Taking the wind out of his sails –
\nSailing in a manner so as to steal or divert wind from another ship’s sails.<\/p>\n
Let the Cat Out of the Bag –
\nIn the Royal Navy the punishment prescribed for most serious crimes was
\nflogging. This was administered by the Boson’s Mate using a whip called a cat
\no’ nine tails. The “cat” was kept in a leather or baize bag. It was considered
\nbad news indeed when the cat was let out of the bag. Other sources
\nattribute the expression to the old English market scam of selling someone a
\npig in a poke (bag) when the pig turned out to be a cat instead.<\/p>\n
No Room to Swing a Cat –
\nThe entire ship’s company was required to witness flogging at close hand. The
\ncrew might crowd around so that the Boson’s Mate might not have enough
\nroom to swing his cat o’ nine tails.<\/p>\n
Start Over with a Clean Slate –
\nA slate tablet was kept near the helm on which the watch keeper would
\nrecord the speeds, distances, headings and tacks during the watch. If there
\nwere no problems during the watch, the slate would be wiped clean so that
\nthe new watch could start over with a clean slate.<\/p>\n
Taken Aback –
\nA dangerous situation where the wind is on the wrong side of the sails
\npressing them back against the mast and forcing the ship astern. Most often
\nthis was caused by an inattentive helmsman who had allowed the ship to head
\nup into the wind.
\nAt Loggerheads –
\nAn iron ball attached to a long handle was a loggerhead. When heated it
\nwas used to seal the pitch in deck seams. It was sometimes a handy weapon
\nfor quarreling crewmen.<\/p>\n
Fly-by-Night –
\nA large sail used only for sailing downwind and requiring rather little attention.
\nNo Great Shakes –
\nWhen casks became empty they were “shaken” (taken apart) so the pieces,
\ncalled shakes, could be stored in a small space. Shakes had very little value.
\nGive (someone) a Wide Berth –
\nTo anchor a ship far enough away from another ship so that they did not hit
\neach other when they swung with the wind or tide.
\nCut of His Jib –
\nWarships many times had their foresails or jib sails cut thinly so that they
\ncould maintain point and not be blown off course. Upon sighting thin foresails
\non a distant ship a captain might not like the cut of his jib and would then
\nhave an opportunity to escape.<\/p>\n
Garbling was the prohibited practice of mixing rubbish with the cargo. A
\ndistorted, mixed up message was said to be garbled.The British navy filled their ships’ crew quotas by kidnapping men off the
\nstreets and forcing them into service. This was called Impressments and was
\ndone by Press Gangs.<\/p>\n
Touch and Go –
\nThis referred to a ship’s keel touching the bottom and getting right off again.<\/p>\n
Scuttlebutt –
\nA butt was a barrel. Scuttle meant to chop a hole in something. The
\nscuttlebutt was a water barrel with a hole cut into it so that sailors could
\nreach in and dip out drinking water. The scuttlebutt was the place where the
\nship’s gossip was exchanged.<\/p>\n
Thanks to the people at www.iokbadcredit.com<\/a> for this!<\/p>\n <\/span><\/font><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Over the Barrel – The most common method of punishment aboard ship was flogging. The unfortunate sailor was tied to a grating, mast or over the barrel of a deck cannon. To Know the Ropes – There was miles and Continue reading More Nautical Sayings<\/span>