We use countless phrases in everyday conversation without realising just how many come from the sea. Here’s a small selection of nautical terms and their origins – for your interest and amusement. Some may be more folklore than fact, so take them with a pinch of salt!
Turn a Blind Eye
To turn a blind eye means to deliberately ignore something. The story goes that in 1801, at the Battle of Copenhagen, Admiral Nelson put his telescope to his blind eye so he would not see the signal to stop firing. He ignored the order – and won the battle.
Feeling Blue
If you’re feeling blue, you’re echoing an old seafaring custom. When a ship lost its captain or an officer on a voyage, she would return home flying blue flags and painted with a blue stripe along her hull as a sign of mourning.
Hunky-Dory
Everything’s hunky-dory when all is fine. The phrase is thought to come from “Honcho-dori,” a street in Yokohama, Japan, known for entertaining visiting sailors. The name became slang for things that were easy-going or enjoyable.
Long Shot
A long shot is something with little chance of success. In the age of sail, cannons were inaccurate beyond close range. Landing a hit from a distance was lucky indeed – hence, a long shot.
I’m Pooped
To say you’re pooped is to say you’re exhausted. The term comes from the poop deck, the highest deck at the stern. If a ship was swamped by a heavy sea washing over that deck, it was said to have been pooped, overwhelmed and spent.
Bite the Bullet
To bite the bullet means facing something unpleasant with courage. Before anaesthetics, soldiers and sailors undergoing surgery were sometimes given a bullet to bite on during the ordeal.
Show Your True Colours
This phrase means to reveal your real intentions. Warships once carried flags of different nations and could fly false colours to deceive the enemy. But before opening fire, naval custom demanded a ship hoist its actual ensign, showing its true colours.
No Room to Swing a Cat
If a place is cramped, there’s no room to swing a cat. The cat wasn’t a feline but the cat-o’-nine-tails, a whip used for flogging. With the whole crew summoned to witness punishment, the deck could be so crowded the whip was hard to swing without striking others.
The Sun Is Over the Yardarm
Said when it’s time for a drink, this term dates back to the days when the sun was observed to pass above the foreyard of a ship around 11 a.m. in northern latitudes. That marked the time for the day’s first rum ration. Today it simply means: it’s a good time for a drink.
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