AHOY—a call given by men on one ship to greet men on another.

AVAST—an officer shouts “avast” if he wants a seaman to stop hauling on a line.

BELAY—to tie or make fast. A belaying pin is a short rod which can be stuck into a holder so that a line can be twisted around it. There were many belaying pins on old sailing vessels, and they made handy weapons at times.

DEEP SIX—when a sailor throws something overboard, he “gives it the deep six.” The expression comes from the days when sailors measured the depth of water with a leadline. The “deep six” was a place on the line which showed the water was six fathoms (36 feet) deep.

FOUL—Seamen use this word to describe anything that has gone wrong or got mixed up. A snarled line is foul. A ship’s hull covered with barnacles is foul. Bad weather is foul.

NORWEGIAN STEAM—seamen say they use “Norwegian steam” when they do heavy work without the help of machinery.

SCUTTLE BUTT—the drinking fountain on a ship. Because seamen often gather there to talk, the rumors and gossip that they pass on are also called “scuttle butt.”

SEA LAWYER—a seaman who likes to argue about rules and regulations.

SLOP CHEST—a room where seamen can buy clothes. Every ship is required to have one.

SLUMGULLION—a seaman’s word for stew that he doesn’t like.

TRAMP—a freighter that ties up anywhere and has no regular schedule.

WINDJAMMER—a sailing vessel.