Port and starboard are nautical terms used to refer to the left and right sides of a vessel, while onboard and facing the bow. In the early days of boating, boats were controlled using an aft (back) side of the ship. When sailing, sailors use port tack to indicate wind blowing from the port side of the vessel.
Port and starboard are non-interchangeable terms referring to the two halves of the vessel. When looking from the bow to the stern, the port lies on the right side, while the starboard side lies on the left side. When looking forward, toward the bow of a ship, port and starboard refer to the left and right sides, respectively.
Port is the left-hand side of a ship, with the side rudder (steorbord) on the right. The origin of the sailing term port is believed to be due to its sound difference from starboard. Originally, sailors called the left side port because it sounds different from starboard.
Port and starboard are used to indicate directions when boating, as left and right should never be used to indicate direction. The main reason for this difference is that the port side of a boat is the left-hand side when facing the bow (front) of the boat. It is called a port because it was historically the left side of the boat.
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