stem/fore,stern/aft,plate/plating

STEM: The bow of the ship. The extreme forward end where port and starboard shell plate adjoin.

STEM POST: The bow or stem frame. Aheavy bar sand wiched between the port and starboard shell plates.

FORE: The forward section, or section from amidships to the bow of the ship.

BOW: The stem or the extreme forward section of a vessel.

AFT: Toward, at or near the stern of the ship.

STERN: The extreme after end of the ship.

KEEL: The backbone of the ship's frame, running on the bottom along the contre of the vessel in a fore and aft direction. Frames of the ship are attached to the keel.

KEELSON: The main longitudinal stiffening of a ship's hull at the keel area. Deep girders, particularly at the machinery space areas are used in some cases as machinery pedestals. Fore and aft vertical plate member located above the bottom shell on each side of the centre vertical keel and some distance therefrom.

Plate一般就是说plate, Plating一般和shell连用做plating shell（不一定完全正确、感觉没什么大区别）

只是个人习惯问题.....不过

Stern是和Bow 对应,,,Fore 和 Aft对应..

什么时候用都成.

什么时候用stem如stem　post，什么时候用fore

同理stern/aft,plate/plating，keel/keelson