Pirate Language

 Things Pirates say:

Landlubber: term for a person who has little knowledge or experience of ships and travelling by sea. 

ahoy: hello

Avast ye!: Stop you!; pay attention!

blimey: something said when one is in a state of surprise

heave ho: instruction to put some strength into whatever one is doing

Savvy?: a question that means, “Do you understand?”

Shiver me timbers!: an expression used to show shock or disbelief

Sink me!: an exclamation of great surprise

yo ho ho: 

bilge-sucking: an insult indicating someone drank dirty bilge water from the bottom of the ship

black spot: a death threat 

blow the man down: getting knocked to the ground or killed 

cleave him to the brisket: cut a man nearly in half with a sword

dance with Jack Ketch: to hang 

dead men tell no tales: the reason given for leaving no survivors

give no quarter: show no mercy; pirates raised a red flag to threaten no quarter

landlubber: a person who is uncomfortable, or not incredibly skilled, at sea

lily-livered: an insult for someone who displays cowardice

keelhaul: a punishment in which someone was dragged back and forth under the ship

mutiny: a situation in which the crew chooses a new captain, sometimes forcibly removing the old one

scallywag: an inexperienced pirate, considered an insult

scurvy dog: an insulting name

shark bait: If you're made to walk the plank, you'll be shark bait or a dying sailor whose body will soon be thrown into the sea

son of a biscuit eater: an insult

walk the plank: A punishment

briney deep: the ocean

cackle fruit: hen's eggs

clap of thunder: a strong alcoholic drink

dance the hempen jig: to be hanged

Davy Jones' locker: mythological place at the bottom of the sea where drowned sailors were said to go

feed the fish: if you lose a sea fight, your body will feed the fish

fire in the hole: a canon that is loaded and ready to fire

hang the jib: to frown or scowl

hearties: friends and comrades

hempen halter: the noose used to hang people

hornswaggle: to cheat, swindle

no prey, no pay: a pirate law meaning the crew didn't get paid but took a share of any loot

peg leg: a wooden leg

run a rig: play a trick

sea legs: when a pirate can walk comfortably on a moving ship

scuttle: to sink a ship

scuttlebutt: a cask of drinking water; slang for gossip

swashbuckler: a daredevil

three sheets to the wind: someone who is quite drunk

abaft, or aft: toward the back of the boat

all hands hoay: everyone on the deck

batten down the hatches: a signal to prepare the ship for an upcoming storm

bilge: the lowest decks of the ship, often filled with water.

binnacle: where the compass is kept on board the ship

black jack: a pirate flag; a large tankard

buccaneer: name for a pirate mainly found in the Caribbean in the 17th and 18th centuries

coaming: a surface that prevented water on the deck from dripping to lower levels of the ship

cockswain or coxswain: the helmsman

crow's nest: the place on the ship where the lookout stand is built

duffle: a sailor's belongings and the bag they were carried in

dungbie: rear end of the ship

flibustier: name for the American pirates found around the West Indies during the Golden Age of Piracy

freebooter: a pirate or looter, from the same origin as flibustier, someone who took loot or booty

head: toilet on board the ship

Jacob's ladder: rope ladder that was used to climb aboard ships

Jolly Roger: the famous pirate flag with a skull and crossbones on it

man-o-war: the name used for a pirate ship that is heavily armed and ready for battle

old salt: a sailor that has a great deal of experience on the seas

orlop: lowest deck in the ship where cables are stored

poop deck: deck that is the highest and farthest back

privateer: a sailor sponsored by the government, paid by what he could plunder from an enemy, technically a step up from a pirate

rigging: the lines and ropes that held the sails

seadog :an old sailor or pirate

booty: treasure or loot

bounty: the reward for a deed

cat o’ nine tails: a whip with nine separate strands on the end

chase gun: a cannon at the prow, or front, of a ship

coffer: a chest full of treasure

cutlass: type of sword used by the pirates

doubloons: Spanish gold coins

pieces of eight: Spanish coins