port". Oxford English Dictionary (Onlineed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.) In this week’s Dispatches from The Secret Library, Dr Oliver Tearle explores the obscure and mysterious history of a now ubiquitous word posh — [20] Although it only appeared as recently as the early 20th century, posh is one of the oldest chestnuts of English etymology. The story got around that it was an acronym for port out, starboard home, an allusion to the fact that wealthy… … The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins Ahoy, matey! Because they don’t want to walk the plank, sailors use the words port and starboard to make sure they know which direction the captain is talking about. However, it’s easy for landlubbers to get turned around by these words.

Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present provided Henley with material for his extra-ordinary translations of Villon: Sheidlower, Jesse (2009). The F-Word. New York: Oxford University Press US. ISBN 978-0-19-539311-8. Vessels with bilateral symmetry have left and right halves which are mirror images of each other. One asymmetric feature is where access to a boat, ship, or aircraft is at the side, it is usually only on the port side (hence the name). Port and starboard are nautical terms for watercraft, aircraft and spacecraft, referring respectively to the left and right sides of the vessel, when aboard and facing the bow (front). Then, towards the end of the nineteenth century, an alternate meaning of ‘posh’ arose, again from that constant stream of living language, slang. Once again, this ‘posh’ was a noun rather than the more familiar adjective we use today, although, interestingly, this ‘posh’ referred to a dandy: a well-dressed, and often well-off, man about town. Among other sources, this ‘posh’ appears in the 1902 book Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present, compiled by John S. Farmer and William Ernest Henley (the latter of whom was the author of the poem ‘ Invictus’ as well as the inspiration for the character Long John Silver).The debate has raged long and hard as to whether port and starboard should be the accepted terminology across the sport of rowing, but we can finally confirm that British Rowing will be adopting the terms across our official publications. The port side is the side to the left of an observer aboard the vessel and facing the bow, towards the direction the vehicle is heading when underway. The starboard side is thus to the right of such an observer. [1] Bennett, Joe (30 April 2012). "Everything you ever wanted to know about the word 'chav' ". Ideas Lab Predictor Podcast, University of Birmingham . Retrieved 2023-10-13. Morton, Harry (January 1, 1983). The Whale's Wake. University of Hawaii Press. p.84. ISBN 9780824808303 . Retrieved March 20, 2020– via Google Books. US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "Why do ships use 'port' and 'starboard' instead of 'left' and 'right?' ". oceanservice.noaa.gov . Retrieved March 9, 2020.

Port Out, Starboard Home — (or Port Outward, Starboard Home) is a phrase popularly believed to provide the etymology for the word . According to this belief, Port Out and Starboard Home were the most desirable cabin locations on ships traveling to and from British colonies … Wikipedia Administration, US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric. "Unlike left and right, port and starboard refer to fixed locations on a vessel". oceanservice.noaa.gov . Retrieved October 12, 2017. {{ cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list ( link)a b NOS Staff (December 8, 2014). "Why Do Ships use "Port" and "Starboard" Instead of "Left" and "Right?" ". NOAA National Ocean Service (NOS) Ocean Facts. Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) . Retrieved February 2, 2017– via OceanService.NOAA.gov. Posh!" is an up tempo song and musical number from the popular 1968 Albert R. Broccoli motion picture, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. It is written by the songwriting team of Sherman & Sherman. It makes reference to the myth that the word " posh" is an acronym for " Port Out, Starboard Home". In the film it is sung when "Grandpa Potts" (played by Lionel Jeffries) is being carried away in his outhouse. He sees the situation as serendipitous until he finally meets his kidnapper, Baron Bomburst in Vulgaria.