In sailing, a halyard or halliard is a line (rope) that is used to hoist a ladder, sail, a flag or a yard. The term halyard comes from the phrase, ‘to haul yards’. When used to hoist a sail, more than one rope or halyard may be needed to raise the sail. For instance, a square sail may be needed for a square sail and only one for some triangular sails.
Synonyms:
Haliard, haliards, halyard, halyards
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary
halyard (noun) a rope or tackle for hoisting and lowering something (as sails)