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A Brief Beginner’s Guide to Sailing Terms

Paige Pesko • Mar 19, 2020

Whether you’re embarking on your first sailing journey or a seasoned pro hoping to sound more professional, it’s important to know proper sailing lingo. This will help you not only appear more knowledgeable during your expedition, but also stay safe while sailing. Many sailing terms are centuries old, yet they remain useful and important to sailing expeditions today. In fact, many phrases in modern vernacular actually originate from sailing lingo. Some honorable mentions include the phrases “hunky-dory,” “bottoms up,” and “loose cannon.” The latter once denoted exactly what one would expect, and it's now used to describe someone with an unpredictable nature. This beginner’s guide to sailing terms will help you become better acquainted with some of the phrases you’ll be most likely to encounter when sailing.

Ship specifics

Regardless of size, almost all sailing vessels adhere to the same naming conventions for the different parts of the ship. Familiarizing yourself with the most basic parts of a ship will help you get your bearings before you set sail.

Port vs. Starboard

These are perhaps the most commonly confused words in a new sailor’s vocabulary. However, understanding the difference becomes quite simple when you realize that, in essence, these words denote the difference between left and right. Port refers to the left-hand side of the ship, while starboard refers to the right. Correctly identifying the port or starboard side of a ship requires the sailor to face the bow of the ship. A simple trick to remember the difference between port and starboard is that the words “port” and “left” each consist of four letters. Therefore, port will be the left side of the ship.

Bow vs. Stern

Remembering the difference between the bow and the stern can also be difficult for newcomers. The front of a ship is called the bow. You can easily recognize it simply by looking at what direction the boat is traveling in. Therefore, the stern of the ship must be the back end. The stern is also sometimes referred to as the aft.

Helm

The helm refers to the boat’s steering wheel. Similar to a plane’s cockpit, the helm is where the ship’s captain takes up residence. Most vessels do use a standard wheel, but some smaller ships may utilize a tiller instead.

Locational lingo

It’s important to know the location of items within the ship, but it’s also important to know the location of the ship in relation to your surroundings.

Windward vs. Leeward

The terms windward and leeward refer to the direction of the wind in relation to the boat itself. Wind is the driving force for sailing vessels, so understanding the difference between these terms is crucial. Windward refers to the direction in which the wind is currently blowing, while leeward refers to the opposite direction of the wind.

Jibing vs. Tacking

Jibing and tacking denote different ways to change a boat’s course. When tacking, the bow of a ship is angled so that the winds change from one side of the boat to the other. Conversely, jibing is a sailing maneuver in which the stern of a boat turns to change the direction of the wind from one side to the other.

To brush up on your sailing slang even further, contact our team at Sailing San Francisco to schedule private sailing lessons in San Francisco. Captain John has over 20 years of experience, and he’ll be happy to answer all your sailing queries.

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