🔍 Key Concepts

• Plain whipping is the simplest form of whipping used to keep a rope from unlaying or fraying • More advanced whippings (like sailmaker’s or West Country whipping) usually show extra tucks, crossings, or knots in the illustration • Focus on which letter shows a smooth series of close, straight turns around the end of a rope, with no fancy crossings or extra knots showing

💭 Think About

• Look closely at letters J, V, E, and F: which one is clearly drawn on the end of a single rope just to prevent fraying, rather than joining two lines or securing to an object? • Which illustration shows many small, even wraps around the rope’s end, without diagonal strands, reef knots, or turns around a post or another line? • Which of the other options are actually bends (joining two lines) or hitches (around a spar or pile), and therefore not a whipping at all?

✅ Before You Answer

• Make sure the correct letter is on the end of one rope only, not around a post, rail, or another line • Verify that the wraps around the rope are parallel and straight, with no visible crossing pattern (that would indicate a sailmaker’s or other fancy whipping) • Confirm the other choices are used for joining lines or making a hitch, which eliminates them as whippings