29 Terms
Contributors in General boating
General boating
Loose cannon
Boat; General boating
An irresponsible and reckless individual whose behaviour (either intended or unintended) endangers the group he or she belongs to. A loose cannon, weighing thousands of pounds, would crush anything ...
Loggerhead
Boat; General boating
An iron ball attached to a long handle, used for driving caulking into seams and (occasionally) in a fight. Hence: 'at loggerheads'.
Fender
Boat; General boating
An air or foam filled bumper used in boating to keep boats from banging into docks or each other.
The doldrums
Boat; General boating
Also called the "equatorial calms", is a nautical term for the equatorial trough, with special reference to the light and variable nature of the winds.
Adrift
Boat; General boating
Afloat and unattached in any way to the shore or seabed, but not under way. It implies that a vessel is not under control and therefore goes where the wind and current take her (loose from moorings, ...
Over the barrel
Boat; General boating
Adult sailors were flogged on the back or shoulders while tied to a grating, but boys were beaten instead on the posterior (often bared), with a cane or cat, while bending, often tied down, over the ...
