Cant

A term signifying the inclination that anything has from a square or perpendicular.

Cant-ribbands, are those ribbands that do not lie in a horizontal or level direction, or square from the middle line, but nearly square from the timbers, as the diagonal ribbands. (See Ribbands.)

Cant Timbers, are those timbers afore and abaft whose planes are not square with, or perpendicular to, the middle-line of the ship.