Sailor

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /ˈseɪ.lɚ/

Definitions

1. A person whose occupation involves working on a ship or boat, typically as a member of the crew
2. An individual engaged in maritime navigation and ship operations, often performing duties such as steering, maintaining equipment, or handling cargo
3. A workman or worker who contributes to the functioning of a vessel at sea by managing navigational tasks, safety protocols, and cargo organization

Etymology: The English word "sailor" is a fairly plain formation: it is built from "sail" and the agent suffix "-or", so it means one who sails. What makes it more interesting is that it was not always the everyday term. In Middle English a rival existed. "Marinel" (also spelled "marynell"), borrowed from Old French, meant a sailor, and it came close to pushing the native formation out of use. The word that won was "sailer", and its later alteration into the form "sailor" is what gives us the spelling we use now. The survival of "sailer" over "marinel" is the more telling part. The French-derived term was a foreign import, and English speakers settled on a homegrown formation built from a word meaning "sail" that they already had. Although the Old French word was eventually eclipsed, it left a lasting trace in the English vocabulary through "mariner", which is a doublet of the same source, so the sea-going sense survives in two forms that English speakers still use side by side.

Synonyms: mariner, seafarer, seaman, crew member