as in longshoreman
one who loads and unloads ships at a port a trade embargo that was especially hard on the nation's dockhands

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of dockhand Two of the eight tainted Tylenol bottles came from Jewel stores in the northwest suburbs, though neither had passed through the Melrose Park warehouse where Arnold had long worked for Jewel as a dockhand. Chicago Tribune, 29 Sep. 2022 Alhonna is the genesis of the crime drama, where screenwriter Bill Dubuque worked as a dockhand in his youth at the comfortable, somewhat dated, lake retreat. Mike and Wendy Pramik, cleveland, 7 July 2022 Just stepping onto the log from the dock, then maintaining balance as the log was pushed out into the water by dockhands with poles, looked like a challenge. David G. Molyneaux, miamiherald, 19 Aug. 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dockhand
Noun
  • If there are more longshoremen than job orders, a portion of them will go without pay.
    Glenn Taylor, Sourcing Journal, 9 June 2025
  • If there are more longshoremen than job orders, a portion of workers will go without pay.
    Caroline Petrow-Cohen, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2025
Noun
  • His father was a stevedore and his mother an autodidact who aspired to something better than the prefab house where her family lived.
    Molly Fischer, New Yorker, 5 May 2025
  • Docks depended on a circulating pool of male maritime workers—crews of seamen and stokers who manned the tramp steamers, gangs of longshoremen, and stevedores who loaded and unloaded goods, as well as artisans and machinists who maintained and repaired the ships and trains.
    Michael Denning, Foreign Affairs, 21 Aug. 2015
Noun
  • The search effort intensified Friday after authorities confirmed that a dockworker had come forward with the kayak and paddle believed to belong to Valencia.
    Jenna deJong, MSNBC Newsweek, 16 May 2025
  • The head of the dockworkers union praised President-elect Trump for his support amid contract negotiations with port operators, particularly on the issue of automation.
    Taylor Giorno, The Hill, 9 Jan. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Dockhand.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dockhand. Accessed 3 Jul. 2025.

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