powder monkey
Americannoun
-
(formerly) a boy employed on warships to carry gunpowder from the magazine to the guns.
noun
Etymology
Origin of powder monkey
First recorded in 1675–85
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.
From a short hitch as assistant powder monkey in a Colorado gold mine.
From Time Magazine Archive
He was a powder monkey, which meant it was his job to rush heavy bags of explosive gunpowder to the men loading the cannons.
From I Survived the American Revolution, 1776 by Lauren Tarshis
"They will turn you into a powder monkey, Repton."
From Held Fast For England A Tale of the Siege of Gibraltar (1779-83) by Henty, G. A. (George Alfred)
He did not belong to my gun, being a "powder monkey" on No. 16, a six-pounder on the spar deck, but "Kid" was privileged, and he could have penetrated to the captain's cabin with impunity.
From A Gunner Aboard the "Yankee" by Doubleday, Russell
“You’re the little powder monkey, they tell me.”
From The Powder Monkey by Dudley, Ambrose
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.
