(1) The transverse measurement of a boat at its widest point. Also called breadth. (2) One of the transverse members of a ship's frames on which the decks are laid.

see Watch

Liner Shipping Agreements.

A pressure below that of the existing atmospheric pressure taken as a zero reference.

A person or firm who transacts all business in a port on behalf of shipowners or charterers. Also called shipping agent; agent.

(1) To lay a line out in coils so that it can run without fouling. (2) Folding a sail in layers on the boom.

Sailor's songs sung in the forecastle when the men of a watch were off duty. These were sung for entertainment, thus they were not shanties.

One which blows across a boat's side

A pair of additional backstays temporarily rigged to provide extra support to the masts of square rigged vessels when sailing downwind.

The process of checking the accuracy of and adjusting the ship's magnetic compass.

Old Latin name for the south wind.

A strong tropical revolving storm of force 12 or higher. In the northern hemisphere hurricanes revolve in a clockwise direction. In the southern hemisphere these storms revolve counterclockwise and are known as typhoons.

The extreme deck fore and aft measurement of a vessel.

A hoisting apparatus consisting of a block and tackle rigged at the end of a beam.

A switching railroad operating within a commercial area.

A worn out vessel.

Successive shipments are permitted under letters of credit. Usually they must take place within a given period of time.

A form of steam engine where a piston moves back and forth inside a cylinder, transmitting its motion to a driving shaft by a connecting rod and crank.

Air cylinder

To reach the end; to bring one object hard up against another, as when two blocks in a block and tackle arrangement are brought together.