A
ABACK to ADMIRAL of the fleet
Vice-ADMIRAL to AFTER-SAILS
AGENT-VICTUALLER to ALL'S WELL
ALL bands high to ANCHOR
ALL bands high
ALOST
ALONG-side
To lay ALONG-side
ALONG-shore
Lying ALONG
ALOOF
AMAIN
AMIDSHIPS
ANCHOR
To drag the ANCHORS to To fish the ANCHOR
To sheer the ship to her ANCHOR to Top-ARMOUR
ASHORE to AUGER
AWEIGH to AZIMUTH COMPASS
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ALOOF
ALOOF (lof, Fr.) this has frequently been mentioned as a sea-term, but whether justly or not we shall not presume to determine; it is known in common discourse to imply at a distance; and the resemblance of the phrases, keep aloof, and keep a luff, or keep the luff, in all probability gave rise to this conjecture. If it was really a sea-phrase originally, it seems to have referred to the dangers of a lee-shore, in which situation the pilot might naturally apply it in the sense commonly understood, viz. keep all off, or quite off; it is, however, never expressed in that manner by seamen now. See LUFF. It may not be improper to observe, that, besides using this phrase in the same sense with us, the French also call the weather side of a ship, and the weather clue of a course, le lof.
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© Derived from Thomas Cadell's new corrected edition, London: 1780, page 7, 2003
Prepared by Paul Turnbull
http://southseas.nla.gov.au/refs/falc/0042.html