sailor

noun

sail·​or ˈsā-lər 

1

a

: one that sails

especially : mariner

b(1)

: a member of a ship's crew

(2)

: seaman sense 2b

2

: a traveler by water

3

: a stiff straw hat with a low flat crown and straight circular brim

Synonyms of sailor

• mariner
• navigator
• seaman

Examples of sailor in a Sentence

He worked as a sailor on a cargo ship.

the sailors were glad to be arriving in port after their long voyage

Recent Examples on the Web

During the town hall, Caudle told a sailor who was evacuated from Bahrain that officials are working on retrieving belongings that were left behind because the Navy does not have imminent plans to return to the same level of footprint on the base. — Eleanor Watson, CBS News, 21 Sep. 2026

The one that Northrop Grumman and artificial intelligence and quantum tech firm SandboxAQ have developed is similar to a trick that's used by sailors. — New Atlas, 20 Sep. 2026

The present-day map was introduced by Gerardus Mercator, a Flemish cartographer, in 1569 to help sailors navigate the seas. — Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 19 Sep. 2026

Ronald Reagan can have approximately 5,000 sailors aboard when deployed. — Prabhat Ranjan Mishra, Interesting Engineering, 18 Sep. 2026

Word History

Etymology

alteration of sailer

First Known Use

1577, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing sailor

• sailor collar
• sailor's-choice
• sailor suit

Rhymes for sailor

• bailer
• bailor
• baler
• jailer
• jailor
• paler
• sailer
• scalar
• scaler
• tailor
• trailer
• whaler

Kids Definition

sailor

noun

sail·​or ˈsā-lər 

: a person who sails : seaman