gybe

The origin of jib is disputed, but it likely comes from Dutch gijben or gibbe, referring to a sail or the act of shifting a sail from one side to the other. The word appeared in English nautical vocabulary by the 1660s, naming the triangular headsail set forward of the foremast. Some etymologists connect it to an older word meaning 'to turn' — the jib was the first sail to catch a shift in wind.

Each nation's navy cut its jibs differently. An experienced sailor could identify a ship's nationality from miles away by the shape of its jib. A British jib had a different profile from a French one, which differed from a Spanish one. This is the origin of the phrase 'I don't like the cut of your jib,' first recorded in the early 1800s — literally, I can tell by your front sail that you're an enemy.

The phrase migrated from sea to land within a generation. By the 1830s, 'the cut of your jib' meant someone's general appearance or manner — the way they presented themselves to the world. The nautical specificity was forgotten; the metaphor of judging by outward shape survived.

Modern sailboats still fly jibs, and racing crews still argue about jib trim the way their predecessors argued about it three centuries ago. The sail has grown more sophisticated — roller furling, overlapping genoas, self-tacking mechanisms — but the basic triangle of canvas catching wind at the bow remains unchanged.