corvette—A small warship of the late 18th and early 19th centuries.
crossjack (pronounced “cro-jak”)—The square sail sometimes hung from the lowest yard on the mizzenmast of a full-rigged ship. It is not commonly used.
crosstrees—The arms extending laterally near the head of a mast at right angles to the length of the vessel and to the extremities of which the topmast shrouds are stretched for the purpose of giving support to the topmast.
cruiser—A large, fast, and lightly armoured ship of war. The expression is also used in yachting, meaning a boat meant for cruising.
cutter—A sailing boat with one mast carrying staysail, jib, fore and aft mainsail, and sometimes a topsail. Other sails are also sometimes added. In various navies the expression is used to denote a large heavy rowboat propelled by as many as ten oars.
cutwater—That portion of the stem of a vessel that cleaves the water as she moves ahead.
davit—A light crane mounted on a ship’s side and used for hoisting and lowering boats. Ordinarily two davits are used to each boat. The projecting beam over which the anchor is sometimes hoisted is also sometimes called a davit.
deck—The covering of the interior of a ship, either carried completely over her or only over a portion. Decks correspond to the floors and roof of a flat-topped building.
derelict—A ship adrift at sea without her crew.
destroyer—Formerly called “torpedo-boat destroyer.” These ships are enlargements of torpedo boats and were originally designed to destroy those small, fast warships. They have proved very useful for many naval duties, and are now an important part of every large navy’s forces.