first mate


noun
  1. the officer of a merchant vessel next in command beneath the captain.

Words Nearby first mate

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use first mate in a sentence

  • The master had truly observed that it was strange the first-mate did not hear him when he had hailed the brig for assistance.

    Newton Forster | Captain Frederick Marryat
  • “The recall is up on board of the commodore,” said Mathews, the first-mate, to Captain Drawlock.

    Newton Forster | Captain Frederick Marryat
  • You know a lot of us took charge of the Spitfire, and set the captain and first-mate adrift, off Valparaiso.

    Adrift on the Pacific | Edward S. Ellis
  • Five of the hands had been washed overboard, another three men were down below badly hurt, and the first-mate had his leg broke.

  • A son of James Prentiss could not be for anything else than liberty, said the ex-first mate of the Champion, stoutly.

British Dictionary definitions for first mate

first mate

noun
  1. an officer second in command to the captain of a merchant ship: Also called: first officer

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