Boating comes with a vocabulary of its own, and a lot of it gets used at the dock without anyone explaining it. This glossary covers the boat handling and docking terms you're most likely to hear, plus a few that come up in The Boat Docker. Where a topic has its own article, the entry links to it.
A · B · C · D · E · F · G · H · I · J · L · M · N · P · R · S · T · U · V · W
A
- Abeam
- At right angles to the boat's centerline, directly off the side.
- Aft
- Toward the back (stern) of the boat.
- After spring
- A dock line leading forward from the stern area of the boat to the dock. It stops the boat moving backward. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
B
- Back and fill
- Turning a single-engine boat in a tight space by alternating forward and reverse with the wheel hard over. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
- Beam
- The width of a boat at its widest point.
- Boat hook
- A pole with a hook on the end, used to catch lines, pennants and cleats, or to fend off gently. See Picking Up a Mooring Buoy.
- Bow
- The front of the boat.
- Bow line
- A dock line from the bow leading forward to the dock. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Bow thruster
- A small sideways propeller near the bow that pushes the bow left or right at low speed. See Bow and Stern Thrusters.
- Broadside
- Side-on. Wind hitting a boat broadside pushes it hardest. See Docking in Wind and Current.
C
- Chartplotter
- A GPS navigation screen showing the boat's position on a chart. Most have a MOB button. See Man Overboard: What to Do.
- Cleat
- A fitting, usually T-shaped with two horns, used to tie off a line on a boat or dock. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Cleat hitch
- The standard knot for securing a line to a cleat: a turn, a figure-eight and a locking hitch. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Current
- Moving water, from tide or a river, which carries the boat with it regardless of where it points. See Docking in Wind and Current.
D
- Displacement
- The weight of water a boat pushes aside, equal to the boat's own weight. Heavier boats carry more momentum.
- Dock line
- Any line used to tie a boat to a dock. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Downwind
- In the direction the wind is blowing toward. Also called leeward. See Docking in Wind and Current.
- Duty cycle
- How long an electric device, such as a thruster, can run before it must rest to cool down. See Bow and Stern Thrusters.
E
- Engine cut-off switch
- A switch, often on a lanyard clipped to the driver, that stops the engine if the driver leaves the helm. See Man Overboard: What to Do.
F
- Fairway
- The open channel between rows of slips in a marina. See Twin-Engine Docking.
- Fender
- A cushion hung over the side to protect the hull from the dock or another boat. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Fend off
- To push a boat away from a dock or obstacle. Done with fenders or a boat hook, never hands or feet. See How to Dock a Boat.
- Forward spring
- A dock line leading aft from the bow area of the boat to the dock. It stops the boat moving forward. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
G
- Gust
- A sudden, brief increase in wind speed. It shows as a dark ripple moving across the water. See Docking in Wind and Current.
H
- Helm
- The steering position and controls of a boat. Also the person steering.
I
- I/O (inboard/outboard)
- A sterndrive: an inboard engine driving an outboard-style drive unit that turns to steer. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
- Inboard
- An engine mounted inside the hull, driving a fixed propeller shaft, usually steered with a rudder. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
- Integrated controls
- Single-lever engine controls that combine shift and throttle. See Twin-Engine Docking.
J
- Joystick docking
- A computer-controlled system that coordinates engines, drives and thrusters through one joystick. See Bow and Stern Thrusters.
L
- Leeward
- The side or direction away from the wind. Pronounced "loo-ard."
- Line
- A rope in use on a boat.
M
- Man overboard (MOB)
- A person who has fallen from a boat into the water, and the emergency procedure for recovering them. See Man Overboard: What to Do.
- Mooring
- A permanent anchor and buoy that a boat ties to instead of anchoring or docking. See Picking Up a Mooring Buoy.
N
- Neutral
- Engine running with the propeller disengaged. The boat drifts.
P
- Pennant
- The short line attached to a mooring buoy that is brought aboard and secured to the bow cleat. See Picking Up a Mooring Buoy.
- PFD
- Personal flotation device: a life jacket or throwable flotation device. See Man Overboard: What to Do.
- Pivot point
- The point a boat turns around. Going forward it is roughly a third back from the bow on many boats; in reverse it moves aft. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
- Port
- The left side of the boat when facing forward.
- Prop walk
- The sideways push a spinning propeller gives the stern, strongest in reverse. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
- Prop wash
- The stream of water pushed by the propeller. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
R
- Right-hand propeller
- A propeller that turns clockwise in forward when seen from behind. In reverse, it walks the stern to port. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
- Rudder
- A blade at the stern that steers the boat by deflecting water flowing past it. See Single-Engine Docking and Prop Walk.
S
- Separate controls
- Engine controls with a separate shift lever and throttle lever for each engine. See Twin-Engine Docking.
- Side-to
- Docked alongside a pier, parallel to it. See How to Dock a Boat.
- Slip
- A berth in a marina between two piers or pilings, entered bow-first or stern-first. See Twin-Engine Docking.
- Spring line
- A dock line that runs along the dock at a shallow angle, stopping the boat moving forward or back. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Springing off
- Using a spring line and gentle engine power to swing the bow or stern away from a dock when leaving. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Starboard
- The right side of the boat when facing forward.
- Steerage
- Enough water flow or thrust for the boat to respond to steering. See How to Dock a Boat.
- Stern
- The back of the boat.
- Stern line
- A dock line from the stern leading aft to the dock. See Dock Lines and Cleats.
- Stern thruster
- A small sideways propeller near the stern that pushes the stern left or right. See Bow and Stern Thrusters.
T
- Throwable
- A flotation device designed to be thrown to a person in the water, such as a ring buoy or cushion. See Man Overboard: What to Do.
- Tonnage
- A boat's size or weight, often given in tons. Heavier boats carry more momentum and respond more slowly.
- Twin engines
- Two engines driving two propellers side by side, which lets the boat pivot by opposing them. See Twin-Engine Docking.
U
- Upwind
- Toward the direction the wind is coming from. Also called windward. See Docking in Wind and Current.
V
- VHF radio
- The marine radio used for boat-to-boat and emergency calls. Channel 16 is the distress and calling channel. See Man Overboard: What to Do.
W
- Williamson turn
- A man-overboard maneuver that brings a boat back along its own track. See Man Overboard: What to Do.
- Windage
- The area of a boat above the waterline that the wind pushes on. See Docking in Wind and Current.
- Windward
- The side or direction the wind is coming from.