A Glossary of Sailing Terms

The following are some of the basic terms for sailing:

boom – a horizontal spar attached to the bottom edge of a sail, riding on the mast and controlled by sheet.

bow – the forward part of the vessel.

broad reach – a point of sail where the boat is sailing away from the wind, but not directly downwind.

close hauled (beating to weather) – sails and boom pulled in tight, enabling the boat to point as high as possible to the direction the wind is coming from.

genoa (head sail) – also known as genny, usually the biggest jib on the boat.

gybe (also spelled jibe) – the process of turning the yacht so the stern turns through the wind, thereby changing the side of the yacht on which the sails are carried (opposite of tacking).

gybe mark – a buoy or marker anchored on the racecourse for the downwind legs, which causes the boats to gybe (take the stern through the wind) when rounding the mark.

halyards – lines used to haul up the sail and the wooden poles (boom and gaff) that hold the sails in place.

keel – centerline of a boat running fore and aft; the timber at the very bottom of the hull to which frames are attached.

main sail – the sail set on the mainmast. The lowest square sail on the mainmast.

mast – a large wooden pole used to hold up the sails.

port – left side of the ship when facing forward.

rudder – a fin or blade attached under the hull’s stern used for steering.

sheets – piece of line fastened to the sail and used to position relative to the wind.

spinnaker – large ballooning sail that is flown in front of the yacht when the wind comes from aft of abeam. Spinnakers are used when running or reaching, sailing downwind. Also called kite or chute. The head is pulled to the top of the mast, using the halyard; the tack is at the spinnaker pole, projecting it away from the yacht; and the clew is connected to the sheet, trimming the sail.

starboard – right side of the ship when facing forward.

start/finish line – an imaginary line between the race committee boat and a buoy (both of which are anchored) where the boats start and/or finish the race.

stern – after end of a vessel.

tack – the lower forward corner of the sail.

weather mark – a buoy or marker anchored on the race course and usually positioned directly upwind from the starting line. It causes the boats to point as closely as possible into the wind for usually the first leg of a race.

wing and wing (Dead Down Wind) – the situation of a fore-and-aft vessel when she is going dead before the wind, with her foresail hauled over on one side and her mainsail on the other.

Sources: Beaver Lake Sail Club and SchoonerMan’s Dictionary of Boating Terms

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