A sloop is a single-masted sailing boat with a single headsail. The word “sloop” comes from the Dutch “sloep” which comes from the Middle Dutch “slupen” meaning “to glide.”
A cutter is a single masted sailing boat with multiple headsails. The mast of a cutter may be set farther aft than a sloop. This type of craft is of English origin and was used to cut off smugglers (hence “cutter”) between England and France in the nineteenth century.
Shown below are some photographs of sloops and cutters in Port Townsend, Washington.