Sailing Terms

Each day on board the boat, Connor and Chloe took turns looking up common phrases we use in everyday life that originated from life at sea.  They'd pick one and write it down then tape it up on the wall.

 At the end of the day, when we gathered around to talk about our favorite part of the day, they'd ask us if we had any guesses as to what the phrase meant or how it originated.  We learned a lot and thought you might be interested in some of the phrases they quizzed us on:
 

"Holy Mackerel" 
Because mackerel is a fish that spoils quickly, merchants were allowed to sell it on Sundays contradicting the blue laws in 17th-century England. Blue Laws were designed to promote Sabbath observance by placing restrictions on Sunday shopping.  The phrase "Holy Mackerel!" is still used today as an expression of surprise and/or astonishment.

Hunky-Dory"
This term, meaning everything is alright, originated  from a street named "Honki-Dori" in Yokohama, Japan. This street was known by the sailors as the street that catered to the pleasures of sailors.  If life was Honki Dori, a sailor had money, plenty of grog, and a pretty girl.

"Whole nine yards"
This expression means everything or all encompassing. The expression comes from the old square-rigged sailing vessels that had three masts with three yards of sails on each.  The whole nine yards meant all sails were up. 

"Slush fund"
This term originates from the practice of the ship's cook putting the fat from the bottom of the food barrel into a "slush fund" where it was stored until they reached the port where it would be sold to tanneries or candle makers.  The word is now used to describe a money reserve. 

"Jury Rig"
This term describes something that is assembled in a makeshift manner offering nothing more than a temporary solution. It originates from the nautical term "jury mast," which is a temporary mast made from any available pole when the mast has become damaged or lost overboard. This term gave rise to the term 'jury rigging' to describe an attempt to place certain persons as jurors in a court proceeding in an effort to assure a particular legal decision.


"Scuttlebutt"
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.

"Dead Man's Chest"
A coffin.

"Get Hitched"
This is a common term used to describe the act of  marriage.  It comes from the act of joining or hitching two ropes together to form one.

"Three sheets to the wind"
This expression meant that one did not have control of the vessel because one had lost control of the sheets or lines. Today the expression is used to refer to someone who is drunk or does not have control of himself or herself. 

"Footloose and Fancy-Free"
The word comes from the term for the bottom of the sail that is known as the foot of the sail which must be attached to the boom.  If it is not properly attached it may become footloose causing the vessel not to sail properly. Footloose and fancy-free have come to mean someone acting without commitment.

"Dressed to the nines"
To celebrate victories, a returning ship would approach her home waters or port "dressed" in bunting and flags.  As many of the crew as possible would line up on the nine primary yards as a salute to their monarch. Today the expression is often used to describe a person who is dressed in fancy clothing.

"Skyscraper"
This word is most commonly used to describe a tall building.  The word originates from the term for a small, triangular shaped sail that was set above the other sails on the old square-rigged vessels.  They were so tall they seemed to scrape the sky.

"Log book"
Today a record kept on a regular basis aboard ship is called a "log." The term comes from the fact that these records were originally kept by inscribing information into shingles cut from logs and hinged so they opened like books.

"Bamboozle"
From the 17th century, it described the Spanish custom of hoisting false flags to deceive (bamboozle) enemies. Today if one intentionally deceives someone, they are said to have bamboozled them. 

"Hasn't got a clue"
With nautical origins, the clew refers to the corner of the sail where a brass ring is sewn into the fabric of the sail in order to properly hold the sail in place. If a clew should rip, the sail would loose shape and the vessel will not sail in a controlled manner. Until it is refastened, it "hasn't got a clew," . Today someone who "hasn't got a clue" is used to describe someone who doesn't understand something.

"Bale out"
To bale out means to remove water from a vessel.  Now the term is used in the sense of getting out of a bad situation such as selling the shares of a failing company. 

"Bigwigs"
Senior officers in the English Navy were known as "bigwigs" because they  wore huge wigs. Bigwig officers aboard ships were often disliked. Today it is still used to refer to the most important person in a group or undertaking and is often used in a derogatory manner.

"Devil and the deep blue sea"
In traditional wooden ships, the sailors had to caulk or pay the seams with hot tar between the planks of the deck to prevent leakage into the bilge. The devil seam was topmost on the hull next to the scuppers at the edge of the deck and the longest and most difficult seam to caulk. Hence, if there was the "devil to pay," then this was the most difficult and dangerous job since the sailor might be knocked down  by a large wave and find himself between the "devil and the deep blue sea."

"POSH"
Reputedly an acronym for Port Out Starboard Home (POSH).  Wealthy British passengers on the P&O line ships going to India supposedly paid higher ticket prices for cabins that were located on the side away from the brutal heat of the sun.

"Bitter End"
The last part of a rope or final link of chain. The end attached to the vessel, as opposed to the "working end" which may be attached to an anchor, cleat, other vessel, etc. Today the term is used to describe a final, painful, or disastrous conclusion (however unpleasant it may be).

"Freeze the balls off a brass monkey."  

 (for the record, Chloe would like you to know that Connor picked that one.)

Cannon balls where piled on deck beside the cannon, pyramid fashion, and retained in a brass monkey or ring. If the weather was very cold the brass ring would contract faster than the iron cannon balls thus causing some of them to topple. From this, the expression was, and is today, used to describe something which is very cold.

"Round robin"
 This is an expression rooted in British nautical tradition. Sailors planning a mutiny would sign their names in a circle so the leader could not be identified. Today the term is often used in sporting events and competitions when referring to a series of games in which all members of a league play each other one time. 

"All sewn up"
Dead sailors were  "all sewn up" in a bit of canvas with a weight attached to make sure that the corpse sank deep in the water. Today this expression is used to describe something that is "all done" or completed.

"Shake a leg"
This term means to move rapidly. Originally a call to get the hands out of their hammocks to go to work.

"Stick in the mud"
This expression came from the old English practice of burying executed criminal seamen in the mud of the Thames river. Today the expression is used to mean someone not likely to be persuaded or change.