TIL that the forward part of a ship, the forecastle, is pronounced (and sometimes written as) "fo'c'sle"

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Lots of naval terms aren't pronounced the way you would think, e.g. boatswain and gunwale pronounced differently than they are spelled.

Boatswain sounds like bo-sun

Gunwale sounds like gun-ull
My favorite is “lee” and “leeward.” Both have to do with something being down wind. The former is pronounced as it’s spelled, but the first syllable of the latter is pronounced “loo” or “lew.”

Of course, there’s also the Leeward Islands which are often (mis)pronounced as they’re spelled because most people don’t sail anymore!
What happens when the fo'c'sle falls off?
- Well, it’s not supposed to do that, no. But I want to reassure the public that fo’c’sles are safe.
TIL that forward part of a ship is called forecastle
Don’t forget coxswain pronounced cocksun
You would be amazed how many short forms are used in sailing, sometimes crippled to letter salad with apostrophes. Fo'c'sle is not alone, by far.
- Boatswain -> Bosun -> Bo's'n
  
  But Bo's'n uses one more character than Bosun?
  
  Sailing is mental.
I knew that and it took all day for it to percolate that I'd learned it from Kingdom of Loathing.
- Now THAT should be in the Toot Oriole
  
  That's ridiculous. It's not even funny.
Folks-sull
It's Worcestershire all over again...
- "Just call me Wöstösö" -Worcestershire probably
Fok this sull!
Fox 'ole?

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