Fender

An inflated plastic or rubber buffer hung over the side to protect the hull when alongside a dock or another vessel.

Test your knowledge

Know your nautical terms? Play the free SkipperCheck daily maritime quiz — COLREGs, navigation, VHF radio, seamanship. Earn points, climb the global leaderboard.

Play the Daily Quiz →

Related F-terms

Fire extinguisher
A portable pressure-charged bottle used to fight fire on board; yachts typically carry Cla…
Freeboard
The vertical distance from the waterline to the deck edge.
Furl
To roll or gather up a sail so it stows neatly on a boom, stay, or inside a spar.
Fetch
The distance of open water, to windward, over which the wind has blown — the longer the fe…
Furling mainsail
A mainsail designed to roll up inside the mast (in-mast) or inside the boom (in-boom), all…
Fouled
Tangled, jammed, or caught up.
← Back to full glossary
Logo
Logo
Logo
Logo
Logo
Logo