Pirate Terms
A quizlet set of the terms on http://www.io.com/%7Esj/PirateTalk.html.
Terms
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- lad lass lassie
- a way to address someone younger than you
- cutlass
- a curved sword, like a saber but heavier. traditional pirate weapon.
- Rum (adjective)
- strange or odd.
- aft
- short for "after." toward the rear of the ship.
- weigh anchor
- to haul the anchor up; more generally, to leave port
- gun
- a cannon
- swag
- loot. booty.
- shipshape
- well-organized, under control, finished
- landlubber
- a non-sailor
- grog
- generally, any alcoholic drink. Specifically, rum diluted with water to make it go farther
- chase
- the ship being pursued
- poop deck
- the highest deck at the aft end of a large ship.
- rope's end
- another term for flogging
- jolly roger
- the pirates' skull-and-crossbones flag. it was an invitation to surrender, with the implication that those who surrendered would be treated well. A red flag indicated no quarter.
- addled
- mad, insane, or just stupid
- swab (verb)
- to clean.
- buccaneer
- a general term for the caribbean pirates
- feed the fish
- what you do when you are thrown into the sea, dead or alive.
- fore (forrard)
- toward the front end of the ship
- line
- a rope in use as part of the ship's rigging or towing line.
- doubloon
- a spanish gold coin.
- bilge
- nonsense, or foolish talk.
- blimey
- an exclamation of suprise
- brethren of the coast
- the caribbean buccaneers called themselves by this name in the 1640-1680 period. During this time, they actually formed a sort of fraternity and did not (usually) fight each other or even steal from each other.
- sail ho!
- "i see a ship"
- godspeed
- goodbye, good luck!
- hands
- the crew of a ship; sailors
- scurvy
- 1. a deficiency disease which often afflicted sailors; it was caused by lack of vitamin c. 2. a derogatory ajective suitable for use in a loud voice, as in "ye _____ dogs!"
- me hearties
- typical way for a pirate leader to address his crew
- jollyboat
- a small but happy craft, or a dinghy
- matey
- a piratical way to address someone in a cheerful, if not necessarily friendly, fashion.
- flogging
- punishment by caning or by whipping with the cat o'nine tails
- bosun
- boatswain; a petty officer
- no quarter
- surrender will not be accepted.
- port
- 1. a seaport. 2. The left side of the ship when you are facing toward her prow
- briny deep
- the ocean. Probably no pirate in all history ever used this phrase.
- gangway
- "get out of my way!"
- sutler
- a merchant in port, selling the various things that a ship needed for supplies and repairs
- rum (noun)
- traditional pirate drink.
- privateer
- a ship bearing letters of marque, or one of her crew, or her captain.
- pirate
- a seagoing robber and murderer. contrast with privateer
- begad
- by god
- cap'n
- short for captain
- on the account
- the piratical life
- fair winds
- goodbye, good luck!
- spyglass
- a telescope
- shiver me timbers
- an expression of surprise or strong emotion
- me
- a piratical way to say my
- poxy
- diseased. used as an insult
- keelhaul
- punishment by dragging under the ship, from one side to another. The victim would be half drowned, or worse, and lacerated by the barnacles that grew beneath the ship
- letters of marque
- papers issued by a national government during wartime, entitling a privately owned ship to raid enemy commerce, or even attack eny warships.
- corsair
- a more romantic term for pirate. but still a pirate.
- jack ketch
- the hang man. to dance with him is to hang.
- crow's nest
- a small platform, sometimes enclosed, near the top of the mast, where a lookout could have a better view when watching for sails or for land
- deadlights
- eyes
- piece of eight
- a spanish silver coin worth one peso or 2 reales. It was sometimes literally cut into eight pieces, each worth one real.
- splice the main brace
- to have a drink. or a couple.
- dead men tell no tales
- standard pirate excuse for leaving no survivors
- chantey
- a sailor's work song
- dog
- a mild insult, perhaps even a friendly one
- swab (noun)
- disrespectful term for a seaman
- booty
- loot. Pirate _____.
- handsomely
- quickly
- smartly
- quickly. "_______ there, men!"
- addlepate
- fool
- belay
- stop that.
- shanty
- another spelling for chantey- a sea song
- wench
- an individual of the female persuasion. "saucy" is a good adjective to add to this, and if ye can get away with "me proud beauty!," more power to ye.
- black spot
- to place the _____ ____ on another pirate is to sentence him to death, to warn him he is marked for death, or sometimes just to accuse him of a serious crime before other pirates.
- Ahoy
- hello!
- pillage
- to raid, rob, and sack a target ashore
- kiss the gunner's daughter
- a punishment; to be bent over one of the ship's guns and flogged
- blaggard
- "black guard" an insult
- cat o'nine tails
- a whip with many lashes, used for flogging
- reef
- 1. an underwater obstruction of rock or coral which can tear the bottom out of a ship. 2. to ____ sails is to shorten them, tying them partially up, either to show the ship or to keep a strong wind from putting too much strain on the masts.
- starboard
- the right side of the ship when you are facing toward her prow
- lookout
- someone posted to keep watch on the horizon for other ships or signs of land
- bilge-sucking
- a very uncomplimentary adjective
- shark bait
- 1. your foes, who are about to feed the fish 2. a worthless or lazy sailor; a lubber who is no use aboard ship.
- bucko
- familiar term.
- prow
- the nose of the ship
- chest
- traditional treasure container
- davy jones' locker
- the bottom of the sea
- scuppers
- openings along the edges of a ship's deck that allow water on deck to drain back to the sea rather than collecting in the bilges.
- walk the plank
- a piratical execution. the victim, usually blindfolded or with bound hands or both, is forced to walk along a plank laid over the ship's side, to fall into the water below. except this seems to be a total invention; if first appeared in 19th century fiction.
- lights
- lungs
- salt (old salt)
- experienced seaman
- sink me
- an expression of suprise
- yo-ho-ho
- a very piratical thing to say, whether it actually means anything or not
- grub
- food
- jack tar
- a sailor
- head
- the toilet facilities aboard a modern ship. The toilet facilities aboard an ACTUAL pirate ship do not bear thinking about.
- avast
- Hey! Could be used as "stop that!" or "who goes there?"
- belaying pin
- a short wooden rod to which a ship's rigging is secured. a common improvised weapon aboard a sailing ship, because they're everywhere, they're easily picked u p, and they are the right size and weight to be used as clubs.
- maroon
- a fairly common punishment for violation of a pirate ship's articles, or offending her crew.