Larboards

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A side of a ship that is opposite to the starboard side, typically referring to the left side when facing the bow
2. The left-hand side of a vessel when looking forward, used in nautical terminology to indicate direction
3. Referring to the port side of a ship, historically denoting the side used for loading and unloading cargo

Etymology: The "-s" on "larboards" is simply the plural of "larboard," so it refers to more than one ship's port side, which in practice means the left-hand side of a vessel viewed from the stern. The sound-alike trap here is that "larboard" was once the everyday counterpart to "starboard," and the two words were paired on board ship for centuries. The word began in Middle English as "ladde-bord" or "latebord," most likely referring to the side on which cargo was loaded. Sixteenth-century spellings such as "lerbord," "leereboord," and "larboord" show the word wandering in form before it settled. Its final shape came from association with "starboard," the steering side, which was a sensible partner because the two words were used together in shipboard orders. Because the two words sounded so alike when shouted in a gale, sailors' commands could be confused, and the Royal Navy eventually replaced "larboard" with "port" to avoid the mix-up.