Ship Ahoy! Expressions of the Sea

Every profession, trade or job has its terminology that is key to their work and tasks. Some occupations, like the military, have acronyms that are easier to use instead of saying the whole phrase associated with the description of the subject. Sailors and those that work on the ocean also have expressions that have been used for centuries.

Often these expressions have become part of our everyday language, yet we may not know the original meanings or their roots. Some of them I’ve heard from my grandparents and the meaning was understood, if not the origin it was derived from ions ago.

For visitors to any seaside community certain nautical words are used more often and their history is fascinating to know. High and Dry — this expression is usually said when someone was supposed to meet you and never show up.

“I was left high and dry,” one might say out of annoyance. In a nautical definition, it is used to describe a boat that has run aground, out of the water and not going anywhere because it is stuck on dry land. Are you feeling a big groggy, after an exhausting day at the beach, swimming, surfing or doing some physically tiring activity?

Well the expression comes from an old time drink, which was rum and water mixed together, called grog. It’s been said that this was served to sailors in a watered-down fashion to both save on rum and not to give the sailors too much alcohol aboard ship.

Loose Cannon — naturally this is not a complimentary description to describe someone and often means someone that is unpredictable. Way back in early sailing days it was used to describe the cannons on the deck of the ship that were tied by ropes, yet could become loose if not tightly secured. Not something you’d want to happen in a gun battle or walking aboard the ship if cannon’s ropes broke and it rolled around the deck towards you. Clean Bill Of Health — this is something we all want to hear after a yearly physical at the doctor or dentist’s office.

The origin also has to do with a medical clearance of sorts. In the old days, when a ship came into a port and all the sailors on board were free of disease and had nothing contagious the ship was given a certificate of “Clean Bill of Health” so they could dock and the sailors come to shore. Pipe Down - Who doesn’t remember our parents telling us when we were children and making too much noise to “pipe down?”

Perhaps we use it ourselves now to quiet our own noisy children. Well, the original meaning was pretty much similar when a deckhand would play the last tune of the evening on his pipe to signify the end of the day. It was lights out for the sailors and time for everybody to be quiet and go to sleep. Obviously that meaning hasn’t changed much in hundreds of years. Scuttlebutt — if you worked in an office, you’ll know the office water color is the place to hear the latest gossip or discuss the last episode of “The Crown,” “Outlander” or “Yellowstone.”

Back in early sailing days, a wooden cask holding drinking water was called a scuttlebutt. As the sailors quenched their thirst they would stand around and chat for a while and soon the question was “what’s the scuttlebutt” when asking about a certain topic. In essence that was their water cooler meeting place.

Not much has changed over centuries, we see! So for all you landlubbers, that’s the scuttlebutt for now!