Bring up—To anchor.
Broach to—To come to against wind and helm.
Capsize—To turn over.
Carvel built—Constructed with the planks flush edge to edge and the seams caulked and payed.
Caulking—Driving oakum into the seams of a vessel with a mallet and a blunt chisel called a caulking iron.
Clews—The lower corners of square sails; the lower after-corners of fore-and-aft sails.
Clinch—To fasten a rope by a half hitch and then seize the end back to the standing part.
Close-hauled—Hauled as close to the wind as the sails will permit without shaking their luffs. A cutter-rigged yacht with well-cut canvas should lie within four and a quarter points of the wind. Some modern racing craft have done half a point better than this. Square-rigged vessels cannot head better than five and a-half points of the wind.
Collar—An eye spliced in a shroud or stay to go over the masthead.
Comber—A big wave.