gybe.
To shift a fore-and-aft sail from one side of a sailing vessel to the other, while sailing before the wind.
Meaning & usage
To shift a fore-and-aft sail from one side of a sailing vessel to the other, while sailing before the wind.
Of a fore-and-aft sail or its boom: to shift, often forcefully and suddenly, from one side of a sailing vessel to the other.
Generally of a small sailing vessel: to change tack with the wind crossing behind the vessel.
Often as gybe at: to balk, hesitate, or vacillate when faced with a course of action, plan, or proposal.
Where this word comes from
Probably from Dutch gijben (obsolete), gijpen; cognate with Danish gibbe, German gieben, giepen, Swedish gipa, gippa. The noun is derived from the verb; compare Dutch gijb (obsolete), gijp (“act of gybing; a boom”).
The act of gybing. A sudden shift of a sail's angle, or a sudden change in the direction that a vessel is sailing in.
The act of gybing. A manoeuvre in which the stern of a sailing vessel crosses the wind, typically resulting in the forceful and sudden sweep of the boom from one side of the vessel to the other.
A sudden change in approach or direction; vacillation.
Where this word comes from
Probably from Dutch gijben (obsolete), gijpen; cognate with Danish gibbe, German gieben, giepen, Swedish gipa, gippa. The noun is derived from the verb; compare Dutch gijb (obsolete), gijp (“act of gybing; a boom”).
Alternative spelling of jibe (“taunt”).
Where this word comes from
See jibe.
Alternative spelling of jibe (“taunt”).
Where this word comes from
See jibe.
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.