Nautical Etymology

Each month our resident etymologyst examines a nautical phrase or saying that has found its way into everyday usage.

“Crew Cut”

The United States Navy in particular were keen on uniformity of hair styles for their crew. Those in authority cited health and moral reasons for keeping sailors’ hair short, and therefore justified a compulsory weekly shearing onboard ship. A US Navy direction from long ago states “No eccentricities in the manner of wearing the hair, beard, or moustache are allowed”.

(To show ones) “True Colours”

Related to being above board, a subterfuge could be perpetrated by running up false flags, or colours, to confuse an enemy or approaching pirate. So a ship which showed its true colours was revealing its real identity.

“Chock A Block”

If the rigging lines are pulled too tight, the blocks through which the ropes run bang together making proper control of sails difficult. So when things are too close together they’re Chock and Block.

“The Bitter End”

The inboard end of the anchor chain or rope was fastened to the strong point of the ship, known as "The Bitts". Hence the bitter end refers to the extremity beyond which further progress is not possible.

“Turning a Blind Eye”

It is said that in 1801, during the Battle of Copenhagen, the great British naval hero Horatio Nelson deliberately held his telescope to his blind eye, in order not to see the flag signal from the commander to stop bombarding the enemy. So if we choose to ignore something we shouldn’t, we turn a blind eye. In Nelsons case he won!

“Batten Down the Hatches”

If a storm was looming it was necessary for the ships carpenter to nail extra battens across the hatches to prevent ingress of water to the hold and cabins below. These days we refer to expedient behaviour in advance of predicted trouble as “Battening down the hatches”

"Taken Aback"

'Aback' means in a backward direction - toward the rear. The first to be 'taken aback' were not people though but ships. The sails of a ship are said to be 'aback' when the wind blows them flat against the masts and spars that support them. If the wind were to turn suddenly so that a sailing ship was facing unexpectedly into the wind, the ship was said to be 'taken aback'. Nowadays, 'taken aback' is an allusion to something that is startling enough to make us jump back in surprise.

"Bail Out"

To stop a ship from sinking, one would extract or bail excess unwanted water from it. If you are bailing someone out, you are helping them avoid a metaphorical sinking. These days governments bail out sinking banks!

"Three Sheets to the Wind"

Sheets, being ropes (or occasionally, chains) fixed to the lower corners of sails, to hold them in place. If three sheets are loose and blowing about in the wind then the sails will flap and the boat will lurch about like a drunken sailor. The phrase is these days more often given as 'three sheets to the wind', rather than the original 'three sheets in the wind'. Sailors of the 19th Century had a sliding scale of drunkenness: 'one sheet in the wind' or 'a sheet in the wind's eye' was just tipsy; two more drunk; and three sheets was the falling over stage!

"Shiver My Timbers"

One meaning of the word ‘shiver’, which is now largely forgotten, is 'to break into pieces'. The origins of this phrase, often quoted in movies of the genre, are as a sailor's oath… meaning “let my boat break into pieces”.

"To Fathom Out"

A Fathom is a nautical measure equal to six feet (a bit less than 2 metres). When sounding into an anchorage a man at the front of the ship would work out how many Fathoms deep the water was, and therefore the right amount of chain could be paid out. So if you have fathomed something out you have come up with a good idea of the scale of the problem. If you can't Fathom something out you may be in "deep water".

In our new 18-part series, our resident etymologist explores the origins of nautical phrases that have found their way into everyday language.

"Above Board"

A common pirate trick was to keep all but a few of the men out of sight. At long distance, someone inspecting them with a telescope might be fooled into thinking they were seeing a peaceful merchantman with a small crew, and so no threat. The devious captain kept his men low behind the bulwarks - or below the top deck; a captain with nothing to hide would keep his crew "above board”.

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If you can contribute any sayings, please email Kevin Fearn.