[mstern]

A question for the learned panel: A lot of the members here use the marks "S/Y" and "S/V". I have read or heard elsewhere that S/Y means "sailing yacht", and that S/V means "sailing vessel", and that there is a difference between the two: an S/Y is a boat used for pleasure, while a S/V is a commercial vessel. Is this your understanding? In the informal real world, it doesn't seem to me to be something to get worked up over, but is there a place or use of the terms where it makes a real difference?

P.S.: I assume the same distinctions apply to the terms M/Y and M/V (motor yacht and motor vessel)?