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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

The professor was still in a deep sleep; having been transferred by the aid of a deck hand, or two, to his bower.

From Four Years in Rebel Capitals An Inside View of Life in the Southern Confederacy from Birth to Death by DeLeon, T. C.

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.