Journal Entries
Treasure Island Terms
Posted Nov 25, 2007
Intended only as an aid to enjoying “Treasure Island” for those unfamiliar with some of the nautical, archaic and historical terms used, the following is arranged in two ways.
First, by chapter. The entry for each chapter is arranged alphabetically.
Second, the same entries are presented in a single list arranged alphabetically.
Many of the words listed have various other meanings. The meanings offered here are as I think R. L. Stevenson intended in his tale.
Because the number of entries for each chapter is small it should be practical to read the entire chapter entry here prior to reading the tale. The entries aren't repeated but if one crops up in a later chapter it will be found readily enough in the second, unified, list.
Chapter 1 - The Old Sea-Dog
bearings: position relative to a fixed point, measured especially in degrees.
before the mast: serving as an ordinary seaman (quartered in the
forecastle, also fo'c'sle—the forward part of a ship where the crew has quarters.)
capstan: thick revolving cylinder with a vertical axis, for winding an
anchor cable or a halyard etc. (a halyard is a rope or tackle for
raising or lowering a sail or yard or similar and a yard is a cylindrical spar tapering to each end slung across a mast for a sail to hang from.) See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capstan_%28nautical%29
cocked hat: hat with the brim permanently turned up in two or usually three places.
Dry Tortugas: small group of islands, located at the end of the Florida Keys, USA.
grog-shop: tavern; public house.
mought: odd mixture of might and ought
saber or sabre: sword with a curved blade, thick back and guard.
sea-chest: sailor's storage chest for personal property.
sittyated: (mispronunciation) situated.
Spanish Main: mainland coast of the Spanish Empire around the Caribbean. It included Florida, Mexico, Central America and the north coast of South America. In time it became a general term for the seaways around the Spanish possessions in the Caribbean.
squire: chief landowner in a country district.
weather-eye: keep a (or one's) weather eye on (or open) = be watchful.
Chapter 2 - Black Dog Appears
(nil entry)
Chapter 3 - The Black Spot
apoplexy: sudden loss of consciousness, voluntary movement, and sensation caused by blockage or rupture of a brain artery; a stroke.
daddle: (variation of 'diddle'.) cheat or swindle.
go about: busy oneself with; set to work at. (Another nautical term, 'put about', means to turn round; put (a ship) on the opposite tack.)
landlubber: person unfamiliar with the sea or sailing.
lubber: big, clumsy fellow. (See also 'landlubber'.)
peach: (archaic) inform against.
pipe: (nautical terms) — summon (a crew) to a meal, work, etc.; signal the arrival of (an officer etc.) on board.
reef: (nautical terms) — noun: each of several strips across a sail, for taking it in or rolling it up to reduce the surface area in a high wind. — transitive verb: 1 take in a reef or reefs of (a sail). 2 shorten (a topmast or a bowsprit).
Savannah: port in Georgia, USA.
Yellow Jack: yellow fever — an often fatal tropical virus disease characterized by fever and jaundice. (A jack is a ship's flag. A ship in quarantine flies a yellow flag.)
Chapter 4 - The Sea-Chest
cannikin: small drinking can or cup.
doubloon: Spanish gold coin.
guinea: British gold coin.
gully: (Old English dialect) a large knife.
louis d'or: French gold coin.
lugger: small ship carrying two or three masts with a lugsail on each.
lugsail: (nautical terms) quadrilateral sail which is bent on (tied with a knot) and hoisted from a yard.
quadrant: instrument graduated (especially through an arc of 90°) for taking angular measurements.
yard: cylindrical spar tapering to each end slung across a mast for a sail to hang from.
Chapter 5 - The Last of the Blind Man
deplore: in this context, grieve over.
double: (nautical term) sail around or to the other side of (a cape or headland).
fist: here used figuratively to refer to a handwritten document.
Georges: here used figuratively to refer to the gold coins bearing a king's head.
point: tapering piece of land jutting out into a body of water.
revenue officer: officers of the crown; principle function is to collect the crown's taxes but with other not always clearly defined powers of law enforcement.
Chapter 6 - The Captain's Papers
like as not: probably.
puncheon: very large wooden cask or barrel.
Chapter 7 - I Go to Bristol
deuce: the Devil.
mail: horse-drawn vehicle plying a scheduled route and carrying mail and passengers.
tarpaulin: (archaic) sailor. (Often also as: Jack tar.)
trump: (informal) admirable, helpful, or reliable person.
Chapter 8 - At the Sign of the Spyglass
A.B.: able-bodied; not physically handicapped.
brace of shakes: instantly, as soon as you can shake twice the dice-box.
broach: (nautical term) cause (a ship) to veer to windward and be brought to a standstill.
copper: copper or bronze coin, especially a penny.
davy: affidavit; a written statement confirmed by oath (usu. before an authorized official), for use as evidence in court.
deadeye:. (nautical term) circular wooden block with a groove around the circumference to take a lanyard, used singly or in pairs to tighten a shroud.
deadlight: (usually metal) cover or shutter fitted to a port to keep out light and water.
keelhaul: drag (a person) through the water under the keel of a ship as a punishment.
quid: lump of tobacco for chewing.
shiver my timbers: curse thought to be used by pirates.
stand by: (nautical term) be ready to act or assist.
swab: pejorative term for seaman of lowest rank, after the method used to clean decks with a mop.
Chapter 9 - Powder and Arms
companion: (nautical term) companionway; staircase to a cabin.
humbug: imposter; deceptive or false talk or behaviour.
roundhouse: (nautical term) cabin or set of cabins on the after part of the quarterdeck, especially on a sailing ship.
swivel: A reference to the brass cannon, able to fire a nine pound shot.
Chapter 10 - The Voyage
duff: boiled pudding.
grog: strong drink, usually rum and water.
luff: (nautical term) edge of the fore-and-aft sail next to the mast or stay.
piece of eight: (historical) Spanish dollar, equivalent to 8 reals.
real: (historical) former coin and monetary unit of various Spanish-speaking countries.
trades: trade wind, a wind blowing continually towards the equator and deflected westward.
Chapter 11 - In the Apple Barrel
quartermaster: petty officer in charge of steering, signals, etc.
broadside: the firing of all guns from one side of a ship.
bumboat: small boat carrying or selling provisions etc. to ships. Originally a scavenger's boat removing refuse etc. from ships.
coxswain: person who steers, especially in a rowboat; senior petty officer in a small ship.
blunt: ready money – used here to refer to the treasure.
pannikin: small metal drinking cup.
Chapter 12 - Council of War
(nil entry)
Chapter 13 - My Shore adventure
backstay: rope leading downwards and aft from the top of a mast.
boom: (nautical term) pivoted spar to which the foot of a sail is attached, allowing the angle of the sail to be changed.
chain: jointed measuring line consisting of linked metal rods used to find the depth of water.
con: (nautical term) direct the steering of (a ship).
ebb: movement of the tide out to sea.
manufactory: (archaic) factory.
scour: erosion.
scupper: (often in plural) hole in a ship's side to carry off water from the deck.
warp: haul (a ship) by a rope attached to a fixed point. (Strictly speaking, the 'Hispaniola' wasn't warped, it was towed by the rowed boats.)
Chapter 14 - The First Blow
(nil entry)
Chapter 15 - The Man of the Island
chuck-farthen: (toss-farthing) game of chance using a coin. (Historical: One farthing was one 'fourth' [hence the name] part of a penny; 960 farthings = one pound sterling.)
clove hitch: knot by which a rope is secured by passing it twice around a spar or rope that it crosses at right angles.
cutwater: forward edge of a ship's prow. (Used figuratively in reference to Captain Flint's pallor.)
fancied: imagined.
gaskin: (uncertain) horsehide?
stone: (plural same) British a unit of weight equal to 14 lb (6.35 kg), used especially in expressing the weight of a person or large animal.
Chapter 16 - The Ship is Abandoned
fathom: (plural often fathom when preceded by a number) a measure of six feet (1.8 m), especially used in taking depth soundings.
gig: a light ship's boat for rowing or sailing.
jolly: (plural jollies) (in full jolly boat) a clinker-built ship's boat smaller than a cutter, with a bluff bow and very wide transom.
painter: rope attached to the bow of a boat for tying it to a quay etc.
score: (plural same or scores) twenty or a set of twenty. (nautical term) groove in a block or deadeye to hold a rope.
Chapter 17 - The Jolly Boat's Last Trip
bear up: veer, or steer, against the current.
gallipot: small pot of earthenware, metal, etc., used for ointments etc.
gunwale: (also gunnel) the upper edge of the side of a boat or ship.
leeward: on or towards the side sheltered from the wind.
Round-shot: cannonball
Chapter 18 - The First Day's Fighting
close hauled: (figurative use of nautical term) in a very difficult predicament.
dead shot: accurate marksman.
Chapter 19 - The Stockade Garrison
headpiece: (archaic) intellect
mainstay: (nautical term) stay from the maintop to the foot of the foremast.
maintop: (nautical term) platform above the head of the lower mainmast.
Chapter 20 - Silver's Embassy
(nil entry)
Chapter 21 - The Attack
doldrums: an equatorial ocean region of calms, sudden storms, and light unpredictable winds.
draught: a single act of drinking.
drub: defeat soundly.
hanger: sword or dagger.
loophole: a narrow vertical slit in a wall for shooting or looking through or to admit light or air.
pitch: verb - express in a particular style or at a particular level. Noun - sticky resinous black or dark brown substance obtained by distilling tar or turpentine, semi-liquid when hot, hard when cold, and used for caulking the seams of ships etc.
Chapter 22 - My Sea Adventure
girt: fasten (a sword) with a belt.
halyard: (nautical term) rope or tackle for raising or lowering a sail or yard etc.
thwart: structural member extending across a boat, especially a seat in a rowboat or canoe.
truck: (nautical term) wooden disc at the top of a mast with holes for halyards.
Chapter 23 - The Ebb Tide Runs
fairway: navigable channel.
hawser: (nautical term) thick rope or cable for mooring or towing a ship.
yaw: temporary deviation of a ship from its course, especially through faulty steering or adverse weather conditions.
Chapter 24 - The Cruise of the Coracle
batten: verb - strengthen, fasten, or secure with or as if with battens. Noun - a long flat strip of wood or metal used to hold something in place. “Batten down the hatches” (nautical term) secure a ship's tarpaulins.
bowsprit: (nautical term) spar running out from a ship's bow to which the forestays are fastened.
draw: (of a sail) swell tightly in the wind.
jib: verb - (of a sail etc.) pull or swing round from one side of the ship to the other; also gybe. Noun - triangular staysail from the outer end of the jib-boom (a spar run out from the end of the bowsprit) to the top of the foremast or from the bowsprit to the masthead.
tack: the direction in which a ship moves as determined by the position of its sails and regarded in terms of the direction of the wind.
Chapter 25 - I Strike the Jolly Roger
strike: lower or take down (a flag or tent etc.).
subaltern: a person of inferior rank or status.
Chapter 26 - Israel Hands
cant: take or lie in a slanting position.
pang: (often in plural) sudden sharp pain or painful emotion.
Chapter 27 - Pieces of Eight
beam-ends: (in plural) horizontal cross-timbers of a ship supporting the deck and joining the sides.
Chapter 28 - In the Enemy's Camp
caulker: something used to make watertight a seam on a boat.
crosstrees: two horizontal crosspieces of timber or metal at a masthead that spread the upper shrouds in order to support the mast.
dogwatch: (nautical term) either of two short watches (4-6 or 6-8 p.m.).
keelson: (also kelson) line of timber fastening a ship's floor timbers to its keel.
link: (historical) torch of pitch and tow.
marlinspike: (also marlinespike) (nautical term) pointed iron tool used to separate strands of rope.
tow: coarse and broken part of flax or hemp.
Chapter 29 - The Black Spot Again
gibbet: upright post with an arm from which the bodies of executed criminals were hung for public viewing.
hornpipe: a lively dance, usually for one person, originally to the accompaniment of a wind instrument, and especially associated with the merrymaking of sailors.
Chapter 30 - On Parole
cable: (nautical term) rope or chain of an anchor.
gammon: (transitive verb) hoax, deceive.
ile: (mispronunciation) oil.
slough: (also slew) area of soft miry ground; a swamp or quagmire.
squall: sudden and short-lived violent storm or gust of wind.
stem: (nautical term) main upright timber or metal piece at the bow of a ship to which the ship's sides are joined at the fore end.
stern: the rear part of a ship or boat.
Chapter 31 - The Treasure Hunt
broom: various shrubs, especially Cytisus scoparius, bearing bright yellow flowers.
brush: (usually followed by with) short especially unpleasant encounter.
burthen: archaic variation of burden.
doit: old Dutch coin; something of little value.
flush: (informal) having plenty of something,
junk: (nautical term) hard salt meat.
marish: archaic variation of marsh.
Chapter 32 - The Voice Among the Trees
(nil entry)
Chapter 33 - The Fall of a Chieftain
rifle: search and rob, especially of all that can be found; ransack.
Chapter 34 - And Last
baffling: frustrating; hindering.
butt: (noun—often followed by of) object of ridicule etc.
handsome: generous, liberal.
man-of-war: armed ship.
mint: make (coin) by stamping metal.
moidore: (historical) Portuguese gold coin, current in England in the 18th century.
sequin: (historical) Venetian gold coin.
wain: (archaic) wagon.
weigh anchor: take the anchor up.
UNIFIED LIST
A.B.: able-bodied; not physically handicapped.
apoplexy: sudden loss of consciousness, voluntary movement, and sensation caused by blockage or rupture of a brain artery; a stroke.
backstay: rope leading downwards and aft from the top of a mast.
baffling: frustrating; hindering.
batten: verb - strengthen, fasten, or secure with or as if with battens. Noun - a long flat strip of wood or metal used to hold something in place. “Batten down the hatches” (nautical term) secure a ship's tarpaulins.
beam-ends: (in plural) horizontal cross-timbers of a ship supporting the deck and joining the sides.
bear up: veer, or steer, against the current.
bearings: position relative to a fixed point, measured especially in degrees.
before the mast: serving as an ordinary seaman (quartered in the forecastle, also fo'c'sle—the forward part of a ship where the crew has quarters.)
blunt: ready money – used here to refer to the treasure.
boom: (nautical term) pivoted spar to which the foot of a sail is attached, allowing the angle of the sail to be changed.
bowsprit: (nautical term) spar running out from a ship's bow to which the forestays are fastened.
brace of shakes: instantly, as soon as you can shake twice the dice-box.
broach: (nautical term) cause (a ship) to veer to windward and be brought to a standstill.
broadside: the firing of all guns from one side of a ship.
broom: various shrubs, especially Cytisus scoparius, bearing bright yellow flowers.
brush: (usually followed by with) short especially unpleasant encounter.
bumboat: small boat carrying or selling provisions etc. to ships. Originally a scavenger's boat removing refuse etc. from ships.
burthen: archaic variation of burden.
butt: (noun—often followed by of) object of ridicule etc.
cable: (nautical term) rope or chain of an anchor.
cannikin: small drinking can or cup.
cant: take or lie in a slanting position.
capstan: thick revolving cylinder with a vertical axis, for winding an anchor cable or a halyard etc. (a halyard is a rope or tackle for raising or lowering a sail or yard or similar and a yard is a cylindrical spar tapering to each end slung across a mast for a sail to hang from.) See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capstan_%28nautical%29
caulker: something used to make watertight a seam on a boat.
chain: jointed measuring line consisting of linked metal rods used to find the depth of water.
chuck-farthen: (toss-farthing) game of chance using a coin. (Historical: One farthing was one 'fourth' [hence the name] part of a penny; 960 farthings = one pound sterling.)
close hauled: (figurative use of nautical term) in a very difficult predicament.
clove hitch: knot by which a rope is secured by passing it twice around a spar or rope that it crosses at right angles.
cocked hat: hat with the brim permanently turned up in two or usually three places.
companion: (nautical term) companionway; staircase to a cabin.
con: (nautical term) direct the steering of (a ship).
copper: copper or bronze coin, especially a penny.
coxswain: person who steers, especially in a rowboat; senior petty officer in a small ship.
crosstrees: two horizontal crosspieces of timber or metal at a masthead that spread the upper shrouds in order to support the mast.
cutwater: forward edge of a ship's prow. (Used figuratively in reference to Captain Flint's pallor.)
daddle: (variation of 'diddle'.) cheat or swindle.
davy: affidavit; a written statement confirmed by oath (usu. before an authorized official), for use as evidence in court.
dead shot: accurate marksman.
deadeye:. (nautical term) circular wooden block with a groove around the circumference to take a lanyard, used singly or in pairs to tighten a shroud.
deadlight: (usually metal) cover or shutter fitted to a port to keep out light and water. Used in the book also to refer to eyes.
deplore: in this context, grieve over.
deuce: the Devil.
dogwatch: (nautical term) either of two short watches (4-6 or 6-8 p.m.).
doit: old Dutch coin; something of little value.
doldrums: an equatorial ocean region of calms, sudden storms, and light unpredictable winds.
double: (nautical term) sail around or to the other side of (a cape or headland).
doubloon: Spanish gold coin.
draught: a single act of drinking.
draw: (of a sail) swell tightly in the wind.
drub: defeat soundly.
Dry Tortugas: small group of islands, located at the end of the Florida Keys, USA.
duff: boiled pudding.
ebb: movement of the tide out to sea.
fairway: navigable channel.
fancied: imagined.
fathom: (plural often fathom when preceded by a number) a measure of six
feet (1.8 m), especially used in taking depth soundings.
fist: here used figuratively to refer to a handwritten document.
flush: (informal) having plenty of something,
gallipot: small pot of earthenware, metal, etc., used for ointments etc.
gammon: (transitive verb) hoax, deceive.
gaskin: (uncertain) horsehide?
Georges: here used figuratively to refer to the gold coins bearing a king's head.
gibbet: upright post with an arm from which the bodies of executed criminals were hung for public viewing.
gig: a light ship's boat for rowing or sailing.
girt: fasten (a sword) with a belt.
go about: busy oneself with; set to work at. (Another nautical term, 'put about', means to turn round; put (a ship) on the opposite tack.)
grog-shop: tavern; public house.
grog: strong drink, usually rum and water.
guinea: British gold coin.
gully: (Old English dialect) a large knife.
gunwale: (also gunnel) the upper edge of the side of a boat or ship.
halyard: (nautical term) rope or tackle for raising or lowering a sail or yard etc.
handsome: generous, liberal.
hanger: sword or dagger.
hawser: (nautical term) thick rope or cable for mooring or towing a ship.
headpiece: (archaic) intellect
hornpipe: a lively dance, usually for one person, originally to the accompaniment of a wind instrument, and especially associated with the
merrymaking of sailors.
humbug: imposter; deceptive or false talk or behaviour.
ile: (mispronunciation) oil.
jib: verb - (of a sail etc.) pull or swing round from one side of the ship to the other; also gybe. Noun - triangular staysail from the outer end of the jib-boom (a spar run out from the end of the bowsprit) to the top of the foremast or from the bowsprit to the masthead.
jolly: (plural jollies) (in full jolly boat) a clinker-built ship's boat smaller than a cutter, with a bluff bow and very wide transom.
junk: (nautical term) hard salt meat.
keelhaul: drag (a person) through the water under the keel of a ship as a punishment.
keelson: (also kelson) line of timber fastening a ship's floor timbers to its keel.
landlubber: person unfamiliar with the sea or sailing.
leeward: on or towards the side sheltered from the wind.
like as not: probably.
link: (historical) torch of pitch and tow.
loophole: a narrow vertical slit in a wall for shooting or looking through or to admit light or air.
louis d'or: French gold coin.
lubber: big, clumsy fellow. (See also 'landlubber'.)
luff: (nautical term) edge of the fore-and-aft sail next to the mast or stay.
lugger: small ship carrying two or three masts with a lugsail on each.
lugsail: (nautical terms) quadrilateral sail which is bent on (tied with a knot) and hoisted from a yard.
mail: horse-drawn vehicle plying a scheduled route and carrying mail and passengers.
mainstay: (nautical term) stay from the maintop to the foot of the foremast.
maintop: (nautical term) platform above the head of the lower mainmast.
man-of-war: armed ship.
manufactory: (archaic) factory.
marish: archaic variation of marsh.
marlinspike: (also marlinespike) (nautical term) pointed iron tool used to separate strands of rope.
mint: make (coin) by stamping metal.
moidore: (historical) Portuguese gold coin, current in England in the 18th century.
mought: odd mixture of might and ought
painter: rope attached to the bow of a boat for tying it to a quay etc.
pang: (often in plural) sudden sharp pain or painful emotion.
pannikin: small metal drinking cup.
peach: (archaic) inform against.
piece of eight: (historical) Spanish dollar, equivalent to 8 reals.
pipe: (nautical terms) — summon (a crew) to a meal, work, etc.; signal the arrival of (an officer etc.) on board.
pitch: verb - express in a particular style or at a particular level. Noun - sticky resinous black or dark brown substance obtained by distilling tar or turpentine, semi-liquid when hot, hard when cold, and used for caulking the seams of ships etc.
point: tapering piece of land jutting out into a body of water.
puncheon: very large wooden cask or barrel.
quadrant: instrument graduated (especially through an arc of 90°) for taking angular measurements.
quartermaster: petty officer in charge of steering, signals, etc.
quid: lump of tobacco for chewing.
real: (historical) former coin and monetary unit of various Spanish-speaking countries.
reef: (nautical terms) — noun: each of several strips across a sail, for taking it in or rolling it up to reduce the surface area in a high wind. — transitive verb: 1 take in a reef or reefs of (a sail). 2 shorten (a topmast or a bowsprit).
revenue officer: officers of the crown; principle function is to collect the crown's taxes but with other not always clearly defined powers of law enforcement.
rifle: search and rob, especially of all that can be found; ransack.
Round-shot: cannonball
roundhouse: (nautical term) cabin or set of cabins on the after part of the quarterdeck, especially on a sailing ship.
saber or sabre: sword with a curved blade, thick back and guard.
Savannah: port in Georgia, USA.
score: (plural same or scores) twenty or a set of twenty. (nautical term) groove in a block or deadeye to hold a rope.
scour: erosion.
scupper: (often in plural) hole in a ship's side to carry off water from the deck.
sea-chest: sailor's storage chest for personal property.
sequin: (historical) Venetian gold coin.
shiver my timbers: curse thought to be used by pirates.
sittyated: (mispronunciation)situated.
slough: (also slew) area of soft miry ground; a swamp or quagmire.
Spanish Main: mainland coast of the Spanish Empire around the Caribbean. It included Florida, Mexico, Central America and the north coast of South America. In time it became a general term for the seaways around the Spanish possessions in the Caribbean.
squall: sudden and short-lived violent storm or gust of wind.
squire: chief landowner in a country district.
stand by: (nautical term) be ready to act or assist.
stem: (nautical term) main upright timber or metal piece at the bow of a ship to which the ship's sides are joined at the fore end.
stern: the rear part of a ship or boat.
stone: (plural same) British a unit of weight equal to 14 lb (6.35 kg), used especially in expressing the weight of a person or large animal.
strike: lower or take down (a flag or tent etc.).
subaltern: a person of inferior rank or status.
swab: pejorative term for seaman of lowest rank, after the method used to clean decks with a mop.
swivel: A reference to the brass cannon, able to fire a nine pound shot.
tack: the direction in which a ship moves as determined by the position of its sails and regarded in terms of the direction of the wind.
tarpaulin: (archaic) sailor. (Often also as: Jack tar.)
thwart: structural member extending across a boat, especially a seat in a rowboat or canoe.
tow: coarse and broken part of flax or hemp.
trades: trade wind, a wind blowing continually towards the equator and deflected westward.
truck: (nautical term) wooden disc at the top of a mast with holes for halyards.
trump: (informal) admirable, helpful, or reliable person.
wain: (archaic) wagon.
warp: haul (a ship) by a rope attached to a fixed point. (Strictly speaking, the 'Hispaniola' wasn't warped, it was towed by the rowed boats.)
weather-eye: keep a (or one's) weather eye on (or open) = be watchful.
weigh anchor: take the anchor up.
yard: cylindrical spar tapering to each end slung across a mast for a sail to hang from.
yaw: temporary deviation of a ship from its course, especially through faulty steering or adverse weather conditions.
Yellow Jack: yellow fever — an often fatal tropical virus disease characterized by fever and jaundice. (A jack is a ship's flag. A ship in quarantine flies a yellow flag.)
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