A deck rating does not need perfect English — just working English: understand orders, report back, name the tools and get on with a multinational crew. Let's go through it in layers, from the deck to the helm, with words, phrases and dialogues. Learn it in blocks, not all at once.
Who is who on deck (deck ratings)
- AB — Able Seaman / Able Seafarer — a qualified rating, stands helm and watch.
- OS — Ordinary Seaman — the entry-level rating.
- Bosun (Boatswain) — the senior of the deck ratings, hands out the work.
- Deckhand / deck rating — a general word for a deck crew member.
- Day worker — works daytime only. Watchkeeper — stands sea watches.
- Pumpman — handles cargo pumps (on tankers).
Parts of the ship
- Bow / stem — the front. Stern — the back. Amidships — the middle.
- Port side / starboard side — left / right (facing forward).
- Forecastle (fo'c'sle) — the forward deck. Poop deck — the after deck.
- Main deck / weather deck — the open decks.
- Hull / bulkhead — the body / an internal wall. Hatch / hatch cover — hold opening / lid.
- Accommodation / bridge / engine room — living block / command / machinery.
- Ballast tank / bilge — trim tanks / the lowest space with drain water.
Tools & materials
- Chipping hammer / needle gun — for removing rust.
- Scraper / wire brush / grinder — for cleaning and grinding.
- Paint / primer / topcoat / thinner — the coating chain.
- Brush / roller / sandpaper — for applying and smoothing.
- Rust / grease / rag — corrosion / lubricant / cloth.
- Shackle / turnbuckle / wire / rope / chain — securing hardware.
Deck work — what the bosun says (commands)
The bosun gives short orders in the imperative. Answer "Yes, Bosun" and repeat the task.
- Chip the rust off / de-rust this area — remove the rust here.
- Sand it down / grind it — smooth it.
- Apply the primer, then the topcoat — coat it in order.
- Coil the rope / flake out the line — stow / lay out the line.
- Secure the cargo / lash it down — hold the cargo in place.
- Sound the tanks — measure the levels.
- Wash down the deck — hose the deck.
- Rig the gangway / rig the pilot ladder — set up access.
Mooring — equipment and commands
Equipment:
- Mooring line / headline / stern line / spring / breast line — the lines.
- Heaving line / monkey fist — the light line and its weighted end.
- Bollard / bitts / fairlead / roller / winch / drum — the mooring gear.
- Fender / gangway — hull protection / access.
Bridge to stations:
- Stand by fore and aft — be ready at both ends.
- Send the heaving line — throw the light line ashore.
- Send one headline and one spring — pass specific lines.
- Slack away / heave in / hold on — pay out / take up / stop and hold.
- Make fast / all fast fore and aft — secured.
- Let go / let go everything — release the lines.
Reports from stations: Ready fore and aft, All lines are fast, All clear (clear of the propeller).
Anchor
- Anchor / windlass / cable (chain) / brake — the anchor gear.
- Shackle — a length of chain (about 27 m).
- Stand by the anchor — be ready to let go.
- Let go the anchor / heave up the anchor — drop / recover.
- How is the cable? — replies: up and down (vertical), brought up (the ship is riding to anchor).
Helm / wheel orders
Always repeat the order, act, then report.
- Midships / steady / steady as she goes — rudder to zero / hold the heading.
- Port / Starboard five / ten / fifteen / twenty — rudder degrees.
- Hard-a-port / hard-a-starboard — full rudder.
- Ease to five / ten / meet her — reduce the angle / check the swing.
- Steer one-eight-five — steer 185 (digits one by one).
Numbers, courses and time
Say digits one by one: 130 → "one-three-zero", course 090 → "zero-nine-zero". Time is 24-hour: 13:00 → "one-three-zero-zero (thirteen hundred)".
How to ask again (it's fine!)
- Say again, please.
- Please speak slower.
- I don't understand.
- Understood / Roger / Copy.
Mini-dialogues
The bosun assigns work:
> Bosun: "Today you chip and paint number two hatch. First de-rust, then primer."
> AB: "Yes, Bosun. De-rust and primer on number two hatch."
At mooring:
> Bridge: "Fore station, send one headline and one spring."
> Fore: "One headline and one spring, roger." ... "Headline is fast."
At the helm:
> Officer: "Port ten."
> AB: "Port ten... ten of port wheel on."
> Officer: "Steady."
> AB: "Steady... course one-eight-five."
Common mistakes
- Not repeating a helm order — a serious fault, not just impoliteness.
- Staying silent when you didn't understand. Better to ask than to do the wrong thing.
- Mixing up port (left) and starboard (right). Remember: "port" and "left" are both short words.
- Standing in the snap-back zone (where a parted line whips back) — life-threatening.
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