oarsman

noun

oars·​man ˈȯrz-mən How to pronounce oarsman (audio)
: one who rows especially in a racing crew
oarsmanship noun

Examples of oarsman in a Sentence

the only oarsman in a rowboat designed for two
Recent Examples on the Web Hundreds of refugees began rushing the rowboats; once those were filled, the oarsmen, worried about capsizing and afraid of being stranded, began beating people back. Casey Cep, The New Yorker, 24 June 2024 Elsewhere in Europe, graphic designer Tormod Fjeld uncovered Bronze Age rock paintings of an animal, a boat with oarsmen and several human figures while hiking in southeastern Norway. Meilan Solly, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Dec. 2023 The main oarsmen, Don Hume (Jack Mulhern) and Rance, rarely speak, and the others hardly register. Amy Nicholson, New York Times, 24 Dec. 2023 The story Sevigny tells takes place mostly in 1938, when an unlikely crew of two female scientists new to river trips joined forces with a would-be commercial boater determined to invent that industry and a rotating cast of oarsmen trying their luck through seldom-run rapids. The Arizona Republic, 24 May 2023 Founded by Friedrich Lürßen in 1875, the German outfit started off building racing rowboats for Bremen oarsmen. Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 12 Apr. 2023 There was the methodical way UCLA’s oarsmen tallied victories in three other events on Mission Bay Saturday. Merrie Monteagudo, San Diego Union-Tribune, 2 Apr. 2023 Inspired by Tom Brown’s Schooldays, and remembering their own rambunctious running days at Shrewsbury, Rugby, or other schools, the young crew oarsmen formed themselves in 1868 into a winter club, Thames Hare and Hounds, the world’s first post-high-school running club. Roger Robinson, Outside Online, 2 Feb. 2023 Fairfax crossed the Atlantic, becoming the first solo oarsman in recorded history to cross any ocean, and reached the shores of Hollywood, Fla., the day before Apollo 11 landed on the moon. Brent Lang, Variety, 17 Dec. 2021

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

Word History

First Known Use

1701, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of oarsman was in 1701

Dictionary Entries Near oarsman

Cite this Entry

“Oarsman.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oarsman. Accessed 5 Nov. 2024.

Kids Definition

oarsman

noun
oars·​man ˈō(ə)rz-mən How to pronounce oarsman (audio)
ˈȯ(ə)rz-
: a person who rows especially in a racing crew
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