Moby-Dick

CXX: The Deck Towards the End of the First Night Watch

Words you’ll meet in this part (12)
helm
A tiller or wheel for steering a ship or boat.
sail
A piece of fabric attached to a boat to catch wind and propel it forward.
stranded
Left without the means to move from a place (e.g., stranded travelers).
lash
To strike with a whip or something similar.
skysail
A sail set above the royal sail on a square-rigged ship.
masts
Tall vertical poles on a ship that support sails and rigging.
keels
The longitudinal structure along the base of a ship's hull for stability.
hunchbacked
Having a back that is hunched or curved due to a deformity or posture.
loftiest
Highest in rank or excellence.
sails
Large pieces of fabric attached to a boat to catch wind and propel it forward.
amid
In the middle of or surrounded by.
scud
To move swiftly or glide smoothly (often used for clouds or ships).

Moby-Dick 12 new words

CXX

The Deck Towards the End of the First Night Watch

Ahab standing by the . Starbuck approaching him.

“We must send down the main-top- yard, sir. The band is working loose and the lee lift is half-. Shall I strike it, sir?”

“Strike nothing; it. If I had poles, I’d sway them up now.”

“Sir!—in God’s name!—sir?”

“Well.”

“The anchors are working, sir. Shall I get them inboard?”

“Strike nothing, and stir nothing, but lash everything. The wind rises, but it has not got up to my tablelands yet. Quick, and see to it.—By and ! he takes me for the skipper of some coasting smack. Send down my main-top-sail yard! Ho, gluepots! trucks were made for wildest winds, and this brain-truck of mine now the cloud-. Shall I strike that? Oh, none but cowards send down their brain-trucks in tempest time. What a hooroosh aloft there! I would e’en take it for sublime, did I not know that the colic is a noisy malady. Oh, take medicine, take medicine!”

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