# sailor

Pronunciation: US say "SAY-lur" /ˈseɪ.lɚ/; UK say "SAY-luh" /ˈseɪ.lə/

## Noun

1. A member of a ship's crew who carries out the ordinary work of the vessel, ranking below the captain and officers; a common seaman or mariner.
   - Simple: A crew member on a ship who does the everyday work, not the captain or officers.
   - _The sailors scrubbed the deck while the captain plotted the course._
   - _Every sailor aboard answered to the bosun before reaching the officers._
2. Someone who sails, especially one who earns a living crewing or navigating ships and other watercraft.
   - Simple: A person whose job is sailing or steering ships and boats.
   - _A skilled sailor reads the wind and currents before setting out._
   - _Sailors navigated by the stars long before modern instruments existed._
3. A person who sails sailboats as a sport or pastime, rather than using boats powered by other means.
   - Simple: A person who sails boats with sails for fun or sport.
   - _A keen sailor, he spends his summer weekends racing his dinghy around the bay._
   - _Recreational sailors gathered at the marina for the weekend regatta._
4. A stiff straw hat with a low, flat crown and a flat, circular brim.
   - Simple: A stiff straw hat with a flat top and a flat, round brim.
   - _She pinned a ribbon around her new straw sailor before the boat party._
   - _Striped blazers and flat sailors were the fashion that summer._
5. Any of various nymphalid butterflies with white markings on a dark background, commonly flying by gliding rather than flapping.
   - Simple: A dark butterfly with white markings that often flies by gliding through the air.
   - _A sailor settled on the damp leaf, its dark wings banded with white._
   - _High in the forest canopy, sailors glide far more than they flap._
6. A brick laid vertically on its smallest end, with its widest face turned toward the outside of the wall.
   - Simple: A brick stood up on its smallest end, with its widest side showing on the wall.
   - _The bricklayer placed a band of sailors to frame the window opening._
   - _A single sailor was set vertically at the corner of the arch._

## Origin

An alteration of the earlier 'sailer', from Middle English 'sailer', 'sayler', equivalent to 'sail' plus '-or'. It is cognate with German 'Segler' and replaced the borrowed Middle English word 'marinel' (from Old French 'marinel').

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/sailor (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).