sailor Hear it!

sailor Definition

sailor (sā′lər)

noun

  1. a person who makes a living by sailing; mariner; seaman
    1. an enlisted man in the navy
    2. any person in the navy
  3. a person sailing on a vessel, as affected by seasickness a good or bad sailor
  4. a straw hat with a low, flat crown and flat brim

Etymology: ME sailer

sailor Synonyms

sailor

n.

  1. A seafaring man

    seaman, mariner, seafarer, pirate, navigator, pilot, boatman, matelot (French), yachtsman, able-bodied seaman, A.B.*, Jack Tar*, tar*, hearty*, sea-dog*, limey*, shellback*, lascar*, salt*, bluejacket*. *

    Kinds and ranks of sailors include --- crew: deck hand, stoker, bakehead*, boilerman, cabin boy, yeoman, purser, ship's carpenter, cooper, tailor, steward, navigator, signalman, gunner, torpedoman, watch, afterguard; officers: captain, commander, skipper*, navigating officer, deck officer, officer of the deck (OD), watch officer, first mate, second mate, third mate, boatswain's mate, boatswain, bos'n*.

  2. A member of the sailing or naval forces

    navy man, marine, midshipman, naval cadet, coastguardsman, Navy Seal, frogman, seabee*, bluejacket*, gob*, leatherneck*, middy*.

sailor Usage Examples

Converse of object

  • shipwreck: Almost frantically, like a shipwrecked sailor calling up a bottled genie, Geller strokes the fork, waiting for the miraculous to happen.
  • cruise: We have a range of products for the cruising sailor, ranging from the Cruising Almanac to rugby shirts adorned with CA logos.
  • kill: The British ships sank 4 of the German cruisers and killed 2,200 sailors, including the German commander Admiral Spree.

Preposition: on

voyage: For centuries scurvy had been the scourge of sailors on long voyages.

Adjective modifier

  • drunken: Two drunken sailors in the audience last night said their singing sounded like a couple of parrots fighting.
  • experienced: In the regatta fleet, for the less experienced sailors, there were 43 entries.
  • Portuguese: The indigenous population were easy fodder for an Armada of Portuguese sailors.
  • accomplished: Mike Sanderson is one of the most accomplished young sailors in the world.
  • keen: In his spare time he is a keen sailor.
  • Olympic: This class has been a stepping-stone for many Olympic sailors world-wide.

Modifies a noun

  • hat: He looks so smart in his sailor hat and collar.
  • suit: On a lighter note, would John really have worn sailor suits for five or more years?
  • lad: One day him and Nelson were boxing, The compass, like sailor lads do.
  • collar: Short sleeved with wrap detail sailor collar at the front, trimmed at the ends with matching covered buttons.
  • outfit: She is also strong, opinionated, plays by her owns rules and she wears a sailor outfit.

Noun used with modifier

  • dinghy: Designed for dinghy sailors Dinghy sailing vests that are designed to make movement around the boat easy.
  • optimist: The optimist sailors dutifully paddled out through the shark barrier, drifted about on the tide for an hour and then paddled back in.
  • round-the-world: Drive and determination are vitally important ingredients for any competitive sportsman and especially a round-the-world sailor.
  • novice: As a novice sailor, my only experience with yachts involved sunbathing on them and scuba diving off them.
  • merchant: It also took off the British merchant sailors who had been captured, by December over 300 of them.