matelot

or mate·low

[ mat-loh, mat-l-oh ]

/ ˈmæt loʊ, ˈmæt lˌoʊ /

noun British Slang.

a sailor.

Nearby words

matchwood, matchy-matchy, mate, mate's rates, matelassé, matelot, matelote, mater, mater dolorosa, mater turrita, mater-

Origin of matelot

1910–15; < French ≪ Middle Dutch mattenoot sailor, equivalent to matte mat¹ + noot companion (Dutch genoot)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for matelot

I prove to you I am not; but a good, sound, safe, French matelot!
Seven Frozen Sailors|George Manville Fenn
He had been a matelot, he said,—made a long voyage, and once touched at an English port.
Rambles in the Islands of Corsica and Sardinia|Thomas Forester
We do not know whether, in peculiar cases, a matelot became his camarade's heir.
The Monarchs of the Main, Volume I (of 3)|Walter Thornbury
The Buccaneers went in pairs, every hunter having his camerade or matelot (sailor), as well as his engags.
The Monarchs of the Main, Volume I (of 3)|Walter Thornbury

No excuse was allowed; and if illness prevented the man elected taking the office, his matelot, or companion, took his place.
The Monarchs of the Main, Volume I (of 3)|Walter Thornbury

British Dictionary definitions for matelot

matelot

matlo or matlow

/ (ˈmætləʊ) /

noun

slang, mainly British a sailor

Word Origin for matelot

C20: from French

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