Radiorails
master brummie
Show a leg
Girlfriends could have an extra half hour in bed when a ship was in port - but they had to 'show a leg' to stay in the hammock while the men got up.
Pull your finger out
Cannons were primed with a little gunpowder in the ignition hole. A sailor would keep it in place with his finger and had to 'pull his finger out' just before firing.
Freeze the balls off a brass monkey
A monkey was a brass tray where cannon balls stored. In cold weather brass contracted and balls fell over.
Let the cat out of the bag/swing a cat
The cat refers to the cat'o nine tails, which was a multi-tailed whip used as a severe form of discipline. The 'cat' – as it was often know – was kept in a cloth bag. If it was taken out, there would be trouble.
Over a barrel
Sailors were often strapped over a barrel before being flogged.
Long shot
The term refers to firing a canon beyond its range - with little chance of success.
At loggerheads
Loggerheads were hollow spheres of iron at each end of a shaft.
They were heated and used to melt tar in a bucket. The expression arose because the two loggerheads can never come together.
True colours
Naval etiquette, which allows false colours or flags to be displayed when approaching an enemy ship, insists that true colours are flown once battle begins and fire is exchanged
Above board
The expression 'all above board' refers to things on the top deck of the ship and therefore open to inspection.
Piping hot
The bo'sun would blow on a pipe to tell mess masters food was ready and to go and collect it while still hot.
Square meal
A sailor's plate or tray was a wooden square.
On the fiddle
The fiddle was a raised lip round sailor's plate.
It indicated how much sailor entitled to. If he took too much, food touched lip and sailor was said to be 'on the fiddle', which was a flogging offence
Grog
Admiral Vernon, who was known as 'Old Grogram' from his habit of wearing a grogram coat, he supervised dilution of daily tot of rum (57% proof, 1/2 gill rum to 1 gill of water).
Feeling groggy
Too much grog!
Three sheets to the wind
This is an expression indicating lack of control of a sail and also being in a high state of inebriation.
Pipe down
At end of day sailors would have to obey a call from bo'sun's pipe, stop talking, turn out lights and go to sleep
Girlfriends could have an extra half hour in bed when a ship was in port - but they had to 'show a leg' to stay in the hammock while the men got up.
Pull your finger out
Cannons were primed with a little gunpowder in the ignition hole. A sailor would keep it in place with his finger and had to 'pull his finger out' just before firing.
Freeze the balls off a brass monkey
A monkey was a brass tray where cannon balls stored. In cold weather brass contracted and balls fell over.
Let the cat out of the bag/swing a cat
The cat refers to the cat'o nine tails, which was a multi-tailed whip used as a severe form of discipline. The 'cat' – as it was often know – was kept in a cloth bag. If it was taken out, there would be trouble.
Over a barrel
Sailors were often strapped over a barrel before being flogged.
Long shot
The term refers to firing a canon beyond its range - with little chance of success.
At loggerheads
Loggerheads were hollow spheres of iron at each end of a shaft.
They were heated and used to melt tar in a bucket. The expression arose because the two loggerheads can never come together.
True colours
Naval etiquette, which allows false colours or flags to be displayed when approaching an enemy ship, insists that true colours are flown once battle begins and fire is exchanged
Above board
The expression 'all above board' refers to things on the top deck of the ship and therefore open to inspection.
Piping hot
The bo'sun would blow on a pipe to tell mess masters food was ready and to go and collect it while still hot.
Square meal
A sailor's plate or tray was a wooden square.
On the fiddle
The fiddle was a raised lip round sailor's plate.
It indicated how much sailor entitled to. If he took too much, food touched lip and sailor was said to be 'on the fiddle', which was a flogging offence
Grog
Admiral Vernon, who was known as 'Old Grogram' from his habit of wearing a grogram coat, he supervised dilution of daily tot of rum (57% proof, 1/2 gill rum to 1 gill of water).
Feeling groggy
Too much grog!
Three sheets to the wind
This is an expression indicating lack of control of a sail and also being in a high state of inebriation.
Pipe down
At end of day sailors would have to obey a call from bo'sun's pipe, stop talking, turn out lights and go to sleep
