A yacht is a watercraft used for pleasure, cruising, or racing, and is privately owned and operated, not utilized for commerce. The term "yacht" has no standard definition, but generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. The name "yacht" comes from the Dutch word "jaght," which translates as "hunter," a fast, light sailing vessel used in the past by the nations navy to chase pirates and other neer-do-wells. When the English King Charles the Second was carried by "jacht" from the Netherlands back home, in 1660, the word soon came to mean a vessel in which important people were carried, not just any old boat.
Yachts come in a variety of types, including sailing yachts and motor yachts, and can be further classified as sports or luxury yachts. Some common types of yachts include:
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Catamaran Yacht: a yacht with two hulls, which provides more stability and space than a monohull yacht.
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Sportfish or Sport Fishing Yacht: a yacht used for fishing with a large cockpit, storage space, and the ability to handle rougher seas. These can also be referred to as Flybridge Sportfish or Sportfish Express and are built for longer durations out on the water.
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Convertible: a yacht that combines features of a standard motor yacht with a sportfish yacht to have entertaining space when you need it, and also fishing space when you need it.
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Ketch: this is the most commonly used rig on two-masted sailing yachts, with a mainmast, rigged with a mainsail and genoa, and a mizzenmast, forward of the rudder shaft, rigged with a single mainsail. The splitting of the sails makes this type of yacht suitable for sailing in bad weather.
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Yawl: exactly the same as a ketch but with the mizzen mast located aft of the rudder shaft.
In summary, a yacht is a watercraft used for pleasure, cruising, or racing, and is privately owned and operated, not utilized for commerce. The term "yacht" has no standard definition, but generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. Yachts come in a variety of types, including sailing yachts and motor yachts, and can be further classified as sports or luxury yachts.
