Luff

Webster's Dictionary of the English Language

·noun The roundest part of a ship's bow.

II. Luff ·noun The side of a ship toward the wind.

III. Luff ·noun The act of sailing a ship close to the wind.

IV. Luff ·noun The forward or weather leech of a sail, especially of the jib, spanker, and other fore-and-aft sails.

V. Luff ·vi To turn the head of a vessel toward the wind; to sail nearer the wind; to turn the tiller so as to make the vessel sail nearer the wind.