| Sailing terms beginning with W |
| Wake |
| Disturbed water left astern |
|
| Warp |
| Strong rope used for anchoring. |
|
| Wear |
| Sailing in a circle to change direction downwind to aviod a gybe. May also mean turning away from the wind, as in
veer. |
|
| Winch |
| A mechanical device used to assist in pulling on lines. It is a reel-like part of the hardware. |
|
| Windlass |
| Type of winch particularly used in raising an anchor. |
|
| Windward |
| Towards the direction form which the wind is blowing. |
