boatswain
pronunciation
How to pronounce boatswain in British English:
UK [ˈbəʊsn]
How to pronounce boatswain in American English:
US [ˈboʊsn]
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- Noun:
- a petty officer on a merchant ship who controls the work of other seamen
Word Origin
- boatswain (n.)
- mid-15c., from late Old English batswegen, from bat "boat" (see boat (n.)) + Old Norse sveinn "boy" (see swain). Phonetic spelling bo'sun/bosun is attested from 1840. BOATSWAIN. The warrant officer who in the old Navy was responsible for all the gear that set the ship in motion and all the tackle that kept her at rest. [Sir Geoffrey Callender, "Sea Passages," 1943]
Example
- 1. Boatswain 's and carpenter 's tools over and above the builder 's standard .
- 2. It is considered , as if you were sitting on the boatswain 's head !
- 3. We thought the boatswain a brute , and , practically , told him so .
- 4. There are many types of paint available nowadays in a widevariety of colors and it is no longer necessary for the boatswain tomix on his own .
- 5. A boatswain is in water supply hand people when assigning the job , say : " your half person goes bow , half person goes buttock , of the others go with me ! "