A sailboat or sailing boat is a boat propelled partly or entirely by sails. The generic term covers a variety of boats, larger than small vessels such as sailboards and smaller than sailing ships, but distinctions in the size are not strictly defined and what constitutes a sailing ship, sailboat, or a smaller vessel (such as a sailboard) varies by region and maritime culture.

At present, a great number of sailboat-types may be distinguished. Apart from size, sailboats may be distinguished by a hull configuration (monohull, catamaran, trimaran), keel type (full, fin, wing, centerboard etc.), purpose (sport, racing, cruising), number and configuration of masts, and sail plan. Although sailboat terminology has varied across history, many terms now have specific meanings in the context of modern yachting.

The following sub-sections outline the most popular monohull sailing vessels. Additional types of vessels, such as multi-hull, are not discussed in these sub-sections.

Today, the most common sailboat is the sloop, which features one mast and two sails: a normal mainsail, and a headsail. This simple configuration is very efficient for sailing towards the wind. The mainsail is attached to the mast and the boom, which is a spar capable of swinging across the boat, depending on the direction of the wind. Depending on the size and design of the headsail it can be called a jib, Genoa, or spinnaker. When sailing directly downwind, a common configuration is to have the headsail sailed to one side of the boat, and the mainsail sailed to the other; this configuration is called "wing on wing".

Ketevan "Katie" Melua /ˈmɛluːə/ (Georgian: ქეთევან "ქეთი" მელუა  listen (help·info); born 16 September 1984) is a Georgian-born British singer, songwriter and musician. She moved to Northern Ireland at the age of eight and then to England at fourteen. Melua is signed to the small Dramatico record label, under the management of composer Mike Batt, and made her musical debut in 2003. In 2006, she was the United Kingdom's best-selling female artist and Europe's highest selling European female artist.

In November 2003, at the age of nineteen, Melua released her first album, Call off the Search, which reached the top of the United Kingdom album charts and sold 1.8 million copies in its first five months of release. Her second album, Piece by Piece, was released in September 2005 and to date^[update] has gone platinum four times. Melua released her third studio album Pictures in October 2007.

According to the Sunday Times Rich List 2008, Melua has a fortune of £18 million, making her the seventh richest British musician under thirty. It was reported in 2009 that she may have lost millions as a result of the global economic downturn. As of May 2011 the singer could have a £12m fortune and she came second in the under 30 rich list.