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Ye pirate dictionary...


gertlush

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To 'belay' has piratical origins apparently...

 

This was taken from the Long John Silver's website which seems to be an authoritative source.

 

Aft - short for "after" or a place toward the end of the ship

Ahoy - Hello

Aloft - up, above

Arrr - a pirate exclamation

Avast - Hey! Could be used as "stop that" or "who goes there"

Becalmed - the state of a sailing ship when it cannot move because there is no wind

Belay - Stop that. "Belay that talk" would mean "shut up"

Bilge - nonsense or foolish talk or the lowest part of the ship, bilge water is the foul, blackish sea water that would collect from seepage in this area

Black Jack - a leather tankard, made stiff with a coating of tar, used by dockside pubs and taverns to serve wine and beer

Blimey - an exclamation of surprise or disgust

Bosun - a petty officer

Bucko - a familiar term. "me bucko" = my friend

Chantey (shanty) - a sailor's song

Chase - the ship being pursued; "the chase is making full sail"

Corsair - a more romantic term for a pirate, but a pirate nonetheless

Crow's Nest - a small platform, sometimes enclosed, near the top of a mast, where a lookout could have a better view when watching for sails or for land

Cutlass - a short, curved thick sword

Davy Jones' Locker - the bottom of the sea

Deadlights - eyes "use yer deadlights, matey"

Dead men tell no tales - standard pirate excuse for leaving no survivors

Doubloon - a Spanish gold coin

Flogging - punishment by caning or by whipping

Fore or forrard - toward the front end of the ship

Freebooter - another term for a pirate

Gangway - move

Hands - the crew of a ship; sailors

Handsomely - quickly

Hold - the cargo area of a ship below the main deck

Jack Tar or tar - a sailor

Jolly Roger - the pirates' skull-and-crossbones flag

Keelhaul - punishment

Lad/Lass - a way to address someone younger than you

Landlubber or lubber - a non-sailor. A landsman

Letters of Marque - proof that a pirate is sponsored by a particular government

Matey - a piratical way to address someone in a cheerful way

Me - a piratical way to say "my"

Me hearties - typical way for a pirate leader to address his crew or friends.

On the Account - the piratical life - a man who "went on the account" was turning pirate

Sail ho! - "I see a ship" The sail of another ship is visible over the horizon

Scurvy - a derogatory adjective suitable for use in a loud voice, as in "Ye scurvy dogs!"

Shiver me timbers - an expression of surprise or strong emotion

Sink me! - An expression of surprise

Spyglass - a telescope

Starboard - the right side of the ship when you are facing toward her prow

Sutler - a merchant in port selling the various things that a ship needed for supplies and repairs

Swab - a disrespectful term for a seaman

Weigh anchor - to haul the anchor up; more generally to leave port

Walk the plank - a piratical execution.

Yo-ho-ho - a very piratical thing to say

 

The Pirate Alphabet

 

A: Ehhhh? - "what's that?"

B: Are - as in "be ye ready to surrender?"

C: Si, si! - To a Spanish pirate, "Yes!"

E: Eeeeee! - "Maaaaaybe"

I: Aye - "Yes!"

O: Oh!

Q: Queue - a sailor's pigtail, usually tarred

R: Arrrrrr! - a general expression of glee

T: Tea - a very inferior substitute for grog

Z: Zee - to a French pirate, "the'

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Belay - Stop that. "Belay that talk" would mean "shut up"

 

Incorrect. The word belay comes from the French word for friction. On the old sailing ships there was a belay pin used to wrap the rope around so one man can hold hundreds of pound with just one hand. It is the same word root origin for use in climbing.

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Keelhaul - punishment

 

To elaborate; when one is keel hauled their hands are tied together at the end of a rope, and their feet are tied together at the end of another rope.

 

The person is dumped into the water on one side of the boat and pulled up on the other side with the other rope. This process is done a few times scraping the barnacles off the keel. After a few passes the victim is dead either from drowning, sawed in half, or eaten by sharks and in many cases for more than one of the reason just listed.

 

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