first mate

noun

: the officer on a ship who is most important after the captain

Examples of first mate in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The captain and first mate provide storytelling about the grand waterfront cottages, the bay’s history of lumber and fur trading, and general lake statistics (170 feet at its deepest point; 69 degrees and holding, at least in summer). Staff Author Published, Travel + Leisure, 5 Sep. 2024 The Arlington started to take on water and the ship's first mate, Junis Macksey, ordered a course to hug the Canadian north shore, which would have provided some cover from wind and waves. Gabe Hauari, USA TODAY, 13 Feb. 2024 The ship’s first mate ordered the Arlington onto a course to hug the Canadian North Shore, which would have provided some cover from wind and waves, but Burke countermanded and ordered his ship back onto a course across the open lake, the discoverers said. Apress, Hartford Courant, 13 June 2024 The musical, which follows four survivors of a shipwreck in 1888 trying to stay alive, including a young man and his older brother, the captain and the first mate, will start performances Oct. 29, with an opening night on Nov. 19. Caitlin Huston, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019 See all Example Sentences for first mate 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'first mate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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Cite this Entry

“First mate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/first%20mate. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

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