sail ho! – common phrase by which the lookouts on a ship would announce that they had spotted another vessel.
scallywag – an untrustworthy individual.
schooner – a type of fore-and-aft rigged vessel with at least two masts.
scupper – an opening along the side of the deck of a ship that allows water to run off.
scurvy – a disease caused by a deficiency of vitamin C, characterized by spots on the skin, bleeding from the mucous membranes, lethargy, abscesses and loss of teeth.
scuttle – to deliberately sink a ship by allowing water into the hull, especially for the purposes of preventing capture of the vessel.
sea anchor – an anchor used in deep water, designed to slow the ship by acting as a source of drag in the water rather than by lodging on the sea bottom. Often used to steady the ship in rough weather.
sea legs - Sea legs refers to the ability to walk steadily on the deck of a rocking ship.
sea rover – another term for pirate.
seam – the line along which the planks of a ship are joined.
set a sail – to open up a sail to the wind.
sheet – a line affixed to the movable corner of a sail.
shiver me timbers – fictional pirate oath referring to an act violent enough to shake or splinter the timbers of a ship.
shorten sail - to reduce or take in part of the sails.
shrouds – lines attached to the masts and sides of the boat.
sink me! – an expression of amazement.
six pounder – a cannon that used a six pound projectile.
skysail – the uppermost sail on a square-rigged vessel.
sloop – a fore-and-aft rigged vessel, traditionally with one mast, but whose definition varied over time to mean any of a number of lightly armed vessels.
slow match - a piece of cord imbued with a flammable compound, designed to stay lit and burn slowly. The cord would be set alight before battle and kept at hand to touch off the gunpowder in a cannon. Blackbeard famously would go into battle with burning lengths of slow match tied in his beard, the resulting clouds of smoke serving to reinforce his demonic reputation.
smartly – energetically.
snow – a type of two-masted ship, rigged similarly to a brig but with the addition of a small fore-and-aft sail, the trysail.
Spanish Main – the mainland coast of the Spanish Empire in and around the Caribbean, which included Florida, Mexico, Central America and the north coast of South America. The Spanish Main included ports of call for the Spanish Treasure fleets hauling New World gold and silver bound for Europe, and as such provided some of the richest hunting grounds available in the Golden Age of Piracy.
spanker - A gaff rigged fore-and-aft sail set from and aft of the aftmost mast.
spar – a round pole used in the ships rigging. Depending on how each individual pole was used, a spar could be a yard, boom, etc.
spike – a pointed metal rod used to spread the strands of a cable.
spirits – alcoholic beverages, particularly distilled alcoholic beverages.
sprung seam – a seam that is leaking.
spyglass – a hand held telescope.
square-rigged – a sail configuration in which the primary sails of the ship are arranged perpendicular (or square) to the keel (compare fore-and-aft rigged.)
squiffy – drunk.
starboard – the right (as you face the bow of the ship.)
stem – the front of the ship, taking its name from the name of the beam to which the rest of the planks of the ship are affixed.
stem to stern - from one end of the ship to the other.
stern – the rear of the ship.
strike colors – to surrender, as indicated by lowering the ship’s national flag.
sutler – a merchant who sells goods to the navy.
swab – a mop, or the act of mopping the deck. By extension, it also refers to a sailor who would perform the task, especially one of low rank (a swabbie.)
swing the lead - to pretend to be ill to avoid work (note that I’ve seen one reference that makes a persuasive claim that this is not an authentic expression of the period.)
