about
To the opposite tack: see go about.
about: turned to face the other direction
In sailing, to go about (or simply "about") means to change course by turning the bow of the vessel through the wind so that the wind shifts from one side to the other. The boat pivots around an imaginary point ahead and passes through the eye of the wind; the sails are trimmed to the new tack as the maneuver completes. This is the standard method of changing course when sailing upwind, in contrast to jibing, which turns the stern through the wind.
The term comes from the Old English "abuten," meaning to turn or pivot. Sailors shortened it to "about" when calling out the maneuver. A related phrase, "helm's alee," signals the start of the turn by announcing that the tiller or wheel is being moved to leeward. The command "ready about" warns crew that the maneuver is imminent so they can prepare to handle the sails.
Practical execution and hazards
During the turn, there is a moment when the sails lose effective wind pressure and the vessel slows. On large or heavily laden ships, this dead zone can last several seconds, during which steerage becomes sluggish. If the boat stalls and fails to pay off on the new tack (called "missing stays"), it may drift backward or require the crew to push the bow around by hand or restart with a jib backwind. In strong currents or near obstacles, a missed stay is dangerous.
Crew must move quickly from one side of the boat to the other to trim the jib and main as the wind fills them on the new tack. On working vessels in heavy weather, about is more hazardous than on modern racing yachts with powerful winches and responsive helms. Timing, weight distribution, and sail trim all affect whether the boat completes the maneuver smoothly or gets caught in irons (head to wind and helpless).
In shipyard and repair contexts, "about" also appears in weather reports and sailing directions. A vessel operating under sail in open water regularly uses the maneuver, so its efficiency and the crew's skill at executing it directly affect passage time and fuel cost for auxiliary engine use when sail alone is insufficient.