a rope used to confine the foremost lower corners of the courses and stay-sails in a fixed position, when the wind crosses the ship's course obliquely. The same name is also given to the rope employed to pull out the lower corner of a studding-sail or driver to the extremity of its boom. The main-sail and fore-sail of a ship are furnished with a tack on each side, which is formed of a thick rope tapering to the end, and having a knot wrought upon the largest end, by which it is firmly retained in the clue of the sail. By this means one tack is always fastened to windward, at the same time that the sheet extends the sail to the leeward.

To Tack, to change the course from one board to another, or turn the ship about from the starboard to the larboard tack, in a contrary wind. Thus a ship being close-hauled on the larboard tack, and turning her prow suddenly to windward, receives the impression of the wind on her head sails, by which she falls off upon the line of the starboard tack. Tacking is also used in a more enlarged sense, to imply that manoeuvre in navigation by which a ship makes an oblique progression to the windward, in a zigzag direction. This, however, is more usually called beating, or turning to windward.