| 0 | Calm | <1 | <1 | Smoke rises vertically. | Sea like a mirror. |
| 1 | Light Air | 1-3 | 1-5 | Direction shown by smoke drift | Ripples with appearance of scales. |
| 2 | Slight Breeze | 4-7 | 6-11 | Wind felt on face; leaves rustle. | Small wavelets; crests glassy. |
| 3 | Gentle Breeze | 8-12 | 12-19 | Leaves and small twigs move. | Large wavelets; crests begin to break. |
| 4 | Moderate Breeze | 13-18 | 20-28 | Branches move; dust and loose paper raised. | Small waves; fairly frequent white horses. |
| 5 | Fresh Breeze | 19-24 | 29-38 | Small trees with leaves begin to sway. | Moderate waves; many white horses. |
| 6 | Strong Breeze | 25-31 | 39-49 | Large branches move; difficulty with umbrellas. | Long waves start to form; foam white. |
| 7 | Near Gale | 32-38 | 50-61 | Whole trees move; inconvenience walking. | Sea heaps up; foam from breaking waves. |
| 8 | Gale | 39-46 | 62-74 | Twigs broken off; walking difficult. | Moderately high waves; edges of crests break. |
| 9 | Strong Gale | 47-54 | 75-88 | Minor structural damage starts. | High waves; sea begins to roll. |
| 10 | Storm | 55-63 | 89-102 | Trees uprooted; considerable damage. | Very high waves; sea takes white appearance. |
| 11 | Violent Storm | 64-72 | 103-117 | Widespread damage. | Exceptionally high waves; small/mid-sized ships disappear. |
| 12 | Hurricane | >73 | >118 | Severe and extensive damage. | Air filled with foam; sea completely white. |
