noun
mariner
MAIR-ih-ner/ˈmærɪnər/
A person who works aboard a ship at sea.
The mariner hauls a line into a neat coil on the ship's deck.
Etymology
The base means “of the sea,” and the added ending identifies a person associated with it. That relationship became occupational: a mariner directs or helps navigate a ship.
In context
the becalmed or wind bound mariner is the skill that assures him he is exactly ninety- three leagues and a quarter from his port?
More examples
- Mariners study the tide before entering the harbor.
- He spent thirty years as a merchant mariner.
- The lighthouse warns mariners about the hidden reef.
Forms
mariner · mariners
Similar words
- sailor
- The more usual everyday term for someone working at sea.
- seafarer
- Seafarer broadly describes someone who travels or works at sea; mariner often emphasizes professional shipboard experience.