Help
Options
Didn't know it?
click below
click below
Knew it?
click below
click below
Don't Know
Remaining cards (0)
Know
retry
shuffle
restart
0:00
Embed Code - If you would like this activity on your web page, copy the script below and paste it into your web page.
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Normal Size Small Size show me how
Master and Commander
nautical vocabulary
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| 18 pounder | a cannon that fires and 18 pound cannonball |
| Ambergris | a waxy substance taken from whales and used for making perfumes. It was highly valuable in the 1800s. |
| Avast | Stop (as in stop what you are doing) |
| Ballast | heavy material stored on a ship to provide stability in rough seas. It can be jettisons (dumped overboard) when heavy cargo is loaded |
| Battery | A cannon |
| Bilge | the lowest compartment at the bottom of a ship where water often accumulates and must be pumped out |
| Boatswain | a non-commissioned officer in charge of sails and rigging, who gives orders by means of a whistle called a pipe. (pronounced "bo-zun") |
| Broadside | firing all your ship’s cannons at once |
| Cat o’ nine tails | a whip used to punish sailors who committed serious offenses |
| Fathom | a unit used to measure the depth of water (one equals six feet). figuratively, to understand something |
| Forecastle | uppermost deck at the front of a ship (pronounced “folk-sil”) |
| Frigate | the second largest class of armed sailing ship |
| General Quarters | an order telling sailors to go to their battle stations and prepare for battle. |
| Grog | A drink given to sailors made of watered down rum |
| Knot | a measurement of speed for ships equal to 1.15 miles per hour |
| Larboard | another word for the left side of a ship |
| Laudanum | a painkiller made of alcohol and opium |
| Man of War | any armed sailing ship |
| Midshipman | a young apprentice naval officer |
| Naturalist | a scientist |
| Poop deck | uppermost deck at the back of a ship |
| Port | the left side of a ship |
| Powder Monkey | a boy (age 8-12) who carried gunpowder to ships cannons |
| Privateer | a pirate who has been given permission by a government to attack enemy ships and steal their cargo |
| Rigging | the masts and ropes used to raise and support the sails |
| Run up the colors | to raise the flag |
| Stand fast / Hold fast | to remain in position and be ready, but don’t fire |
| Ship of the line | a sailing warship of the largest design |
| Starboard | the right side of a ship |
| Weevil | a type of bug that would often infest and eat flour and other food stored below decks |
| Tacking | steering into the wind on a sailing ship |
| Doldrums | literally, a region of the ocean near the equator where there is often no wind. figuratively, a state of inactivity or depression |
| Union Jack | nickname for the flag of Great Britain |
| Scurvy | a disease caused by lack of vitamin C that often affected sailors |
| Keelhaul | a punishment in which a sailor was tied to a rope and dragged around the bottom of a ship, scraping, bruising, and potentially killing them |
| Bow | the front of a boat |
| Stern | the back of a boat |
| Davy Jones' Locker | the bottom of the ocean; the final resting place for sailors who drown |
| League | a sailing distance equal to 3 miles |
| Figurehead | a carved wooden decoration (often a person) at the front of sailing ships |
Created by:
msavage1632
Popular Social Studies sets