Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
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, an epic figure in North Pacific fisheries who started his career as a deck hand on a crabber and went on to cofound Seattle-based Trident Seafoods, died Sunday at his Edmonds home.

From Seattle Times • Oct. 17, 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

I remember the following incident which occurred on this trip: I tried to qualify as a deck hand.

From Between the Lines Secret Service Stories Told Fifty Years After by Smith, Henry Bascom

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.