The ______ of the boat is attached to the frames.

• A. Skin
• B. Deck
• C. Keel
• D. Stringers

Answer: (A)

In wooden boat construction, the hull’s outer surface is the skin, or planking, and it is fastened to the frames (the ribs) to form the watertight shell. The frames define the shape, and the skin provides the continuous exterior surface that keeps water out. The deck is a separate horizontal layer on top of the hull, attached to the upper parts of the frames, not the outer skin itself. The keel runs along the bottom as the main backbone and is connected to the frames, but it is not the hull’s outer skin. Stringers are internal longitudinal stiffeners, not the exterior surface. So the skin being attached to the frames best describes the relationship.