Time to learn the lingo...
Illustrated glossary of ship and boat terms
Came across this one online at brown.edu - Brown University in the USA. I particularly liked the age of the document and some of the terms and illustrations you'll find towards the end.
Click on the button to download the PDF.
Download the PDF Click on the button to download the PDF.
Glossary of sailing terms
This version is a little more up to speed with modern times, but still has some redundant or terms not often used these days.
Take a few moments and download the PDf to keep it somewhere close. You're bound to find a use for it.
Download the PDF 
Nautical dictionary
This is a great nautical dictionary. I think you'll find this one to be the most comprehensive and useful.
Download it and keep it close by, with the other versions.
And please don't think you'll need to get to know all of these terms.
Download the PDF 
They're not ropes...
Every once in a while, somebody says we can call the different lines (or other parts of the boat) whatever we want, and especially that 'rope' is perfectly fine.
By this logic, when it's time to reef, the skipper says: "I'll head into the wind. Once the forward vertical edge of the sail starts flapping, don't release the rope that connects to the back end of the forward sail, the back sail will swing to the other side of the boat (watch your heads), and we'll release the rope that connects to the back of the boom. The boat will be in a stationary position with physical forces balancing the two sails and keel [hove to], and so it will be safer for us to make the total sail area smaller [shorten sail]. Then we'll release the rope that pulls the back sail backwards along the bottom edge [outhaul], release the other rope that lifts the sail, after releasing the rope that connects to the middle of the boom, not the end. etc. etc.”
As you can see, whoever thinks 'sheet', 'outhaul', 'vang', or 'halyard' are confusing, hasn't really thought it through. The same goes for 'starboard and port', 'aft', 'pintle', 'deadeye', 'block.’ And the list is endless. We don't have the 'left' side of the boat, because that depends on which way we're facing. Sure, we could say 'left when facing forward', but the way it is, we can say "grab the portside dock line, no, the one on your left", and it's still clear. There are also specific requirements for all 'halyards', 'dock lines,' and other categories, and so it makes sense to have similar terms for all of them. Let's dispense with this idea that everyone has their own 'truth', 'to each his own,' etc. There's a reason we have the terminology, and once you understand the terminology, you're well on the way to being able to sail decently. If you want, make up your own terms. But in the end you'll be reinventing the wheel - making up terms for specific categories and parts of the boat that everyone aboard will have to learn, with the added bonus that other sailors won't know what you're talking about.
By this logic, when it's time to reef, the skipper says: "I'll head into the wind. Once the forward vertical edge of the sail starts flapping, don't release the rope that connects to the back end of the forward sail, the back sail will swing to the other side of the boat (watch your heads), and we'll release the rope that connects to the back of the boom. The boat will be in a stationary position with physical forces balancing the two sails and keel [hove to], and so it will be safer for us to make the total sail area smaller [shorten sail]. Then we'll release the rope that pulls the back sail backwards along the bottom edge [outhaul], release the other rope that lifts the sail, after releasing the rope that connects to the middle of the boom, not the end. etc. etc.”
As you can see, whoever thinks 'sheet', 'outhaul', 'vang', or 'halyard' are confusing, hasn't really thought it through. The same goes for 'starboard and port', 'aft', 'pintle', 'deadeye', 'block.’ And the list is endless. We don't have the 'left' side of the boat, because that depends on which way we're facing. Sure, we could say 'left when facing forward', but the way it is, we can say "grab the portside dock line, no, the one on your left", and it's still clear. There are also specific requirements for all 'halyards', 'dock lines,' and other categories, and so it makes sense to have similar terms for all of them. Let's dispense with this idea that everyone has their own 'truth', 'to each his own,' etc. There's a reason we have the terminology, and once you understand the terminology, you're well on the way to being able to sail decently. If you want, make up your own terms. But in the end you'll be reinventing the wheel - making up terms for specific categories and parts of the boat that everyone aboard will have to learn, with the added bonus that other sailors won't know what you're talking about.