ordinary seaman

American  

noun

1. a seaman insufficiently skilled to be classified as an able-bodied seaman. O.D., O.S., o.s.

---

ordinary seaman British  

noun

1. a seaman of the lowest rank, being insufficiently experienced to be an able-bodied seaman

---

Etymology

Origin of ordinary seaman

First recorded in 1695–1705

Example Sentences

“The ship quickly broke into two parts. . . . In an effort to save the trio of men with them who could not swim very well, Higgins and Ordinary Seaman William Burras swam over to a coiled-up life-saving net they had spotted floating in the water, and pushed it back to where the other men had been. Unfortunately they had taken too long. . . . by the time they returned to where they had started, the three diffident swimmers had ‘disappeared.’”

From The Wall Street Journal

Currently, an entry-level “ordinary seaman” makes $23.01 per hour, rising to $27.07 with 5,200 hours experience.

From Seattle Times

Ordinary seaman: Responsible for cleaning, first aid, firefighting, lookout.

From Seattle Times

Eventually she signed on for a six-month stint as an ordinary seaman on a ship called the Bay, which was destined for Diego Garcia, an island in the Indian Ocean with a large military base.

From New York Times

Freud served briefly in World War II as an ordinary seaman.

From New York Times