In honor of the memory of those who were lost at Pearl Harbor 81 years ago, we commemorate those from the U.S. Navy. There are an astounding number of nautical terms that we use every day. Here are a few:

Aloof: The word comes from the Dutch adjective “loef”, which means windward. A ship in the wind was not able to control its direction, so a ship “aloof” was unheeding. Today, when a person seems aloof, it describes someone who appears unhearing or unwilling to engage in conversation – as in someone totally oblivious to surroundings.

Cut and run: The verbs describe a person or people who are willing to get away at all costs. During seafaring battles, or if a ship was in danger, the sailors were at times ordered to cut the rope that connected to the anchor so that the crew could escape. To cut and run is to accept whatever losses are incurred, and to get away before it’s too late.

Give a wide berth: The action implies usually to give someone or some event a lot of room so as to avoid trouble. Ships that were part of a fleet, in days of yore – and still today – were anchored far apart so that they would not accidentally crash into each other and cause damage. In that same vein, when ships pass one another asea, they still give each other a wide berth for the same reason.

Pipe down: In order to have the crew ready for any potential hazard, there were rules for sleeping. When it was time for the sailors to call it a night, an officer hit the pipes, which made a loud noise, in order for the men to know it was time to be quiet and go to sleep. Today, the phrase is used for the same reason – to be quiet.

Feeling blue: When the captain or an officer died at sea, the ship flew a blue flag, and at times the hull of the ship was painted blue as a sign of mourning. The term originated with sailors who felt sad, usually due to the loss. Today feeling blue signifies sadness.

In the Doldrums: A feeling of listlessness or dealing with a deep lack of enthusiasm has its provenance in seafaring. The Doldrums are in fact an area of the Atlantic around the equator, which is often calm, lacking any wind for sails. When ships were “in the doldrums” they were often stranded in the water, having to wait until a breeze or sudden storm managed to get them moving again. The word derives from a combination of the 18th century English words “dull” and “tantrums” – as an occasional problematic Atlantic storm, even near the equator, can arise.

Tide you over: The expression today that defines getting just enough until the anticipated event arrives has its beginning with seafaring. Often, like the above doldrums, the lack of wind was a problem for the sailors. When there was no wind for the sails, the ship simply sailed with the tide until the ocean’s breeze returned. Until that time, the crew had to “tide over”.

Dressing down: Sails were essential for seafaring vessels in the old days, and the crew had to take great care to keep them fit for working the ships. When sails were worn, they were treated with oil or wax, with sailors moving downward as they worked. When a sailor needed correction, the term “getting a dressing down” compared him to a sail that needed fixing. Today, when someone needs correction, and it's usually a stern correction, that person gets a “dressing down”.

Taken aback: Too much wind for sailing is just as worrisome as no wind at all. In stormy times at sea, often the sails were thrown back by the wind into their structural supports. It was always a startling occurrence, and the crew had to work hard to ensure that the sails were not torn or blown away. Today, when we are “taken aback”, we are usually startled as well.

Hand over fist: The term signifies rapidly accelerating or accumulating something in great numbers, such as “we were earning money hand over fist”. For sailors, the term meant to quickly reach the crow’s nest while the ship was at sea, climbing quickly, or “hand over fist” on the shrouds or ship’s netting, always a precarious situation with rolling waves and shifting winds.

Blindsided: During battle at sea, ships were outfitted with cannon – albeit smaller ones than those used on land during Civil War times. The artillery usually hit the ships broadside, but sometimes the shot hit at a spot where the crew of the other ship did not expect. Hence, they were not broadsided, but blindsided. The term is aptly used today for the same surprise. It is similar to the term “hit broadside”, which technically means almost the same thing – they just saw the projectile coming.

Clear the deck: The definition of to clear away everything is one of the older nautical terms, beginning with the 1600s. Since there was always a danger of a sudden attack at sea, passengers who were aboard and not part of the crew were often told to clear the deck – or go below – so that the sailors could man their artillery and prepare for battle or for defense against an unwanted approaching vessel.

Ship shape in Bristol fashion: Bristol, England is located on the south coast of Great Britain and has been for many centuries a seafaring town. The people there were (and continue to be) proud of their heritage, so that when anything was glistening and clean, especially in Bristol fashion, it was a high compliment. Ship shape means everything is perfect and in its place.

To the bitter end: The term we use today, such as “we endured it to the bitter end” implies the very last and most difficult, sometimes devastating, termination of the situation. In seafaring, the bitter end was the last part of the rope or cable to which the anchor was attached. When the anchor was dropped, and the rope was completely at its end, the term was “the bitter end” or the rope could stretch no farther.

What would we do without our seafarers? Not only are we grateful for their work in trade and protection, but we would be missing a lot of idioms. Pass the word.