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Synonyms

deck hand

American  

noun

  1. Nautical. a sailor whose duties are performed on deck.

deck hand British  

noun

  1. a seaman assigned various duties, such as mooring and cargo handling, on the deck of a ship

  2. (in Britain) a seaman over 17 years of age who has seen sea duty for at least one year

  3. a helper aboard a yacht

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of deck hand

An Americanism dating back to 1835–45

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

He works as a deck hand, helping to load coal onto river barges.

From The Wall Street Journal • Nov. 29, 2025

The deck hand went onto the deck to close the yacht's windows.

From BBC • May 14, 2025

Chuck Bundrant, 79, an epic figure in North Pacific fisheries who started his career as a deck hand on a crabber and went on to co-found Seattle-based Trident Seafoods, died Oct.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 22, 2021

Two bags, filled with six cans of Planters mixed nuts and seven boxes of K-Cup coffee, were quickly tied on by the Westcott’s deck hand and hoisted aboard the freighter.

From New York Times • Aug. 20, 2016

With the aid of the other deck hand he quickly removed from bow to stern everything that had weight.

From A Captain in the Ranks A Romance of Affairs by Eggleston, George Cary

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.