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All Aboard! 100 Nautical Names That Make a Splash
All Aboard! 100 Nautical Names That Make a Splash
Phrases you didn’t know were nautical
Did you know that a lot of everyday phrases in the English language actually come from sailing? “Feeling blue,” a common expression for when you’re down in the dumps, is said to originate from the tradition of ships flying blue flags when a captain died. “Taken aback”—something you might say when you meet the unexpected—came from a term for when a boat’s sails flattened against the masts during a sudden change of wind. “Bitter end,” “pipe down” and “by and large” are a few other nautical phrases baby can learn along with their ABCs.
How did sailors navigate in ancient times?
Long before GPS and the compass existed, sailors developed unique ways to figure out their location and measure the distance to their destination. Some calculated their position by tracking the direction of the sun and stars. For others, it was as simple as sailing as close to the shore as possible and observing landmarks along the journey. They had to be familiar with the constellations too, and remember when and where they were visible. If a sailor saw the Big Dipper, for instance, they knew they were definitely in the Northern Hemisphere!
