10 Sailing Terms For Beginners

When starting any new sport or hobby, new terminology can be confusing. Sailing comes with its own set of sailing terms and jargon to learn.

 

After spending a week on one of our learn to sail courses you will find you have picked the sailing terms up really fast and speak just as well as a salty old sea dog.

 

Below we have compiled 10 key sailing terms for beginners to learn before they join us on a learn to sail charter. We highly recommend our RYA Essential Navigation and Seamanship online course as a great introduction to basic sailing terms and techniques.

 

10 Important Sailing Terms

 

A diagram showing the parts of the boat and their sailing terms.

Credit: wikipedia.com

1. Bow

The front of the boat is called the bow. It is important to know this to be able to identify port and starboard (explained below).

 

2. Stern

This is sailing jargon for the back of the boat. The stern may also be called aft.

 

3. Port

This sailing tern means the left side of the bow. We like to use this handy phrase to remember which side and colour light this represents: “There is no RED PORT LEFT in the bottle”.

 

4. Starboard

This is the sailing term used to describe right of the bow. A green light would also indicate the starboard side.

 

5. Amidships

In sailing terminology, amidships is used to mean the centre of the boat.

 

An example of windward and leeward.

Image credit: Wikipedia.com

6. Leeward

This word is used to describe a direction downwind from a point of reference. “In the lee of an island” can mean that you are sailing on the sheltered/wind protected side of an island. The side of the ship that is leeward is also called the “lee side”.

 

7. Windward

Is the direction upwind from a point of reference. The windward side of an island is open to the prevailing wind and may have more challenging sailing conditions.

 

8. Tacking

Following a zig-zagging path so as to be able to sail directly upwind by turning the bow of the boat through the wind. Also to note, a starboard or port tack is the sailing term for a leg of the route of the boat depending on the direction of the wind over the boat.

 

9. Gybing

To turn the stern of the boat through the wind to make the wind come across from the other side of the vessel. Written as “gybe” in the UK and “jibe” in the US.

 

 

10. Points of Sail

This is the nautical term for the direction of the wind in relation to the course of a sailing vessel. It is broken up into six points which you can read more about here.

 

For a longer list of nautical and sailing terms check out Wikipedia’s Glossary of Nautical Terms.