merchantman

[ mur-chuhnt-muhn ]

/ ˈmɜr tʃənt mən /

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noun, plural mer·chant·men.

a trading ship.

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Also called merchant ship, merchant vessel.

Origin of merchantman

First recorded in 1520–30; merchant + -man

Words nearby merchantman

merchant, merchantable, merchant bank, merchant flag, merchant guild, merchantman, merchant marine, merchant navy, merchant of death, merchant prince, merchant seaman

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

How to use merchantman in a sentence

The stranger came bowling down under full sail and fired a gun as a hint for the supposed merchantman to stop.
Stories of Our Naval Heroes|Various
We will give him two more broadsides with grape through his stern windows, and then bear up after that lumbering merchantman.
A Roving Commission|G. A. Henty
Later on engaged a pirate brigantine, the Agile, of ten guns, which had just captured a Spanish merchantman.
A Roving Commission|G. A. Henty
A stately merchantman with snowy canvas was entering the Gate.
Legends and Tales|Bret Harte

“She is the very merchantman we saw yesterday, or I am much mistaken,” observed the commander.
The Missing Ship|W. H. G. Kingston

British Dictionary definitions for merchantman

merchantman

/ (ˈmɜːtʃəntmən) /

noun plural -men

a merchant ship

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