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Nautical Terms and Phrases
The letters of the alphabet are listed with their corresponding phonetic alphabet term. The phonetic alphabet is used when spelling terms over a radio so that the listener does not confuse one letter for another. The terms will show up below the list of letters when you click a letter.
A - Alpha	N - November
B - Bravo	O - Oscar
C - Charlie	P - Papa
D - Delta	Q - Quebec
E - Echo	R - Romeo
F - Foxtrot	S - Sierra
G - Golf	T - Tango
H - Hotel	U - Uniform
I - India	V - Victor
J - Juliet	W - Whiskey
K - Kilo	X - X-Ray
L - Lima	Y - Yankee
M - Mike	Z - Zulu

Fair Lead	Deck hardware, usually with an eye used to lead line.
Fair Wind	Wind coming over the beam, quarters or stern, abaft of the beam.
Fairway	The "lanes" used for passageway in a harbor, the channel way.
Fall	A hoisting rope or chain, especially the part of rope or chain to which power is applied.
False Fire	A tube, when lit, burns with a blue flame, used for signaling.
False Keel	Pieces of timber secured under the main keel of vessels.
Fancy Line	A line rove through a block at the jaws of a gaff, used as a downhaul. Also, a line used for cross-hauling the lee topping-lift.
Fantail	The area of the upper deck of a ship that is nearest the stern. More specifically, a rounded afterdeck that overhangs the propeller and rudder.
Fashion Pieces	The aftermost timbers, terminating the breadth and forming the shape of the stern.
Fathom	Six feet.
FCC Rules	Federal Communications Commission rules and regulations governing radio equipment and operation in the United States and its coastal waters.
Feather	To feather an oar in rowing, is to turn the blade horizontally with the top aft as it comes out of the water.
Feather-edged	Planks, which have one side thicker than another.
Feet	In the context of "comes onto her feet." A vessel becoming upright after heeling to one side or another.
Fender	A cushion, placed between boats, or between a boat and a pier, to prevent damage.
Fetch	Making a mark or location when sailing to windward without tacking. Second meaning, the distance wind and waves can travel toward land without being blocked.
Fiberglass	A construction medium using layers of woven glass mats that are bonded together with glue (epoxy).
Fid	A block of wood or iron, placed through the hole in the heel of a mast, and resting on the trestletrees of the mast below. This supports the mast. Also, a wooden pin, tapered, used in splicing large ropes, in opening eyes.
Figure Eight Knot	A knot in the form of a figure eight, placed in the end of a line to prevent the line from passing through a grommet or a block.
Figurehead	A carved figure on the front of the ship, over the cutwater.
Fin Keel	A keel that is narrower and deeper than a full keel.
Fix	The charted position of a boat made by taking two or more bearings on known landmarks.
Flake	A complete loop in coiling down a line so that it can run free. Second meaning, to fold the sail in layers on the boom.
Flare	The outward curve of a vessel's sides near the bow. A distress signal.
Flaw	A gust stronger than the prevailing wind.
Flood	An incoming current.
Floor Keelson	Timbers bolted to the floors and running parallel to the main keelson.
Floorboards	The surface of the cockpit on which the crew stand.
Flotsam	The broad flat parts of an anchor that are designed to grab and hold in the bottom. Second meaning, the fin on a whale.
Fluke	The palm of an anchor.
Fly	The wind direction indicator on the masthead.
Foil	A wing like surface below the hull that, when moving through water, lifts the hull out of the water (planing) allowing greater speeds.
Following Sea	An overtaking sea that comes from astern.
Foot	The bottom edge of a sail.
Fore-and-aft	In a line parallel to the backbone of the vessel.
Forecastle	The crew quarters on a traditional sailing ship forward of the main mast.
Foredeck	The deck area forward of the mast, to work foredeck is to change the headsail or tack or jibe the spinnaker.
Forefoot	The point where the stem joins the keel.
Foremast	The mast nearest the bow.
Forepeak	A compartment in the bow of a small boat.
Forereach	The headway a vessel makes when luffed in the wind.
Foresail	The sail set from the foremast on a schooner.
Forestay	Also known as the headstay, a line running from the bow of the boat to the upper part of the mast, designed to pull the mast forward. A forestay that attaches slightly below the top of the mast can be used to help control the rake of the mast.
Forestay Sail	A sail attached to the forestay, as opposed to a jib, which is attached to the headstay.
Foretopmast	A mast above the foremast.
Forward	Toward the bow of the boat.
Forward Off	Any direction less than 90 degrees off the bow.
Fother	To draw a sail, filled with oakum, under a vessel's bottom, in order to stop a leak. (also known as fodder).
Fouled	Any equipment that is jammed, entangled or dirtied.
Founder	Used to describe a boat that is having difficulty remaining afloat.
Frames	The wooden ribs that form the shape of the hull.
Frap	To pass ropes round a sail to keep it from blowing loose. Also, to draw ropes round a vessel which is weakened, to keep her together.
Freeboard	The minimum vertical distance from the surface of the water to the upper edge of the sides of the boat.
Full And By	The point of sail when all sails are full and drawing and the course is close-hauled.
Full Keel	A keel that runs the length of the boat and having a shallower draft than fin keels.
Furl	To lower a sail or bring it in partially furled to reduce the amount of sail area in use without completely lowering the sail (reefing). A self furling rig winds the sail around the stay or into itself.
Futtock	A curved or vertical timber that when paired with a floor or additional futtocks makes the frame of a wooden ship.