Vocabulary words and definitions for chapters 1 and 2 of The Wreckers by Iain Lawrence.

1. The Wreckers
Vocabulary
Chapters 1-2

2. Chapter 1
1. brig
2. topsail
3. ledgers
4. barometer
5. chart
6. league
7. trough
8. helmsman
9. skulking
10. bowsprit
11. grim
12. aloft
13. lookout
14. ballast
15. jib

3. brig
• A two-masted sailing ship

4. topsail
• A square sail set above the lowest sail on a
mast

5. ledgers
• A book in which transactions for a business
are posted (debits/credits)

6. barometer
• An instrument used for measuring barometric
pressure, for forecasting weather

7. chart
• A map showing coastlines, water depth,
information useful to navigators

8. league
• A unit of distance equal to 3 miles or 4.8
kilometers

9. trough
• A long, narrow depression between waves

10. helmsman
• A person who steers a ship (who is “at the
helm” or wheel of a ship)

11. skulking
• To move about stealthily, or sneakily

12. bowsprit
• A long spar, or pole, at the front (bow) of a
ship

13. grim
• Dismal, gloomy

14. aloft
• In/into a high place; at or toward the upper
rigging on a ship

15. lookout
• One who keeps watch (as on a ship)

16. ballast
• Heavy objects, like stones, placed in the
bottom of a ship to keep it stable

17. jib
• A triangular sail running from the foretopmast
to the bowsprit

18. Chapter 2
1. kelp
2. manacle
3. barrel stave
4. splice
5. geyser
6. flotsam
7. block house
8. supine

19. kelp
• seaweed

20. manacle
• handcuffs

21. barrel stave
• one of the thin, narrow, shaped pieces of
wood that form the sides of a barrel

22. splice
• To join together

23. geyser
• A water spout

24. flotsam
• Wreckage floating on water from a ship

25. block house
• A house with solid walls

26. supine
• Lying on your back with your face upward