Cruise ship workers reveal secret code words passengers have no idea about – from 'coning' to 'Winnie'

When you’re lavishing on a cruise liner all day, you might come to understand a little bit about crew slang in everyday operations – but if you hear this, you’ll wish you didn’t once you find out what it means.

The secret code words used by cruise ship workers has been revealed and just know that once you read the explanations, you’ll never be able to go back.

Cruise ships are majorly popular forms of vacationing, with passengers being able to travel all over the world and explore different cultures.

You also get to know the culture on board, and that includes the way crew communicate to one another.

For instance, ‘echo’ can be used to tell someone that there's a risk of high winds or collision.

Do you know what the words mean? (Getty Stock Images)

If this is followed by the word ‘kilo’, it means that they need to report to their assigned posts due to an emergency.

But hearing words like ‘Winnie’ or ‘coning’ is a different situation entirely.

These words are in reference to traveling on a Disney cruise, as ‘Winnie’ originates from the character name Winnie the Pooh.

However, unlike what the character is famously known for – his love of honey – the code word actually means someone as pooped in the pool.

Nice.

The explanation comes from Business Insider’s interviews with cruise workers, which also led to them discovering what the word ‘coning’ means.

This one, however, is less of a brown problem, and more of a major no-no when it comes to employees.

Coning is apparently code word for when a crew member hooks up with a passenger, which is a fireable offense.

While these are to big terms you won’t want to hear, there are others that have stemmed from cruises.

Winnie means to poop in the pool (Getty Stock Images)

As per The Independent, Cody Candee, CEO of travel luggage firm Bounce.com, said of one of the terms: "If you hear Operation Rising Star, there is no need to be alarmed.

"The cruise staff will have already informed who the deceased was travelling with before making an official announcement to the rest of the passengers. Cruise ships also have international regulations and standards they must adhere to, including the legal requirement to have a morgue on board in case of fatalities."

One that is one to be alarmed by is ‘Oscar’, which means someone on Royal Caribbean and Celebrity ships has gone overboard.

Candee said: "When this happens, the ship will typically stop and launch a coordinated search-and-rescue operation. This process includes deploying lifeboats and activating onboard safety procedures to locate and recover the individual.

"If you happen to hear this code while on deck, stay vigilant. And if you spot someone in the water, immediately inform a cruise worker."