second mate

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noun

the officer of a merchant vessel next in command beneath the first mate.

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Also called second officer.

Words nearby second mate

second language, second lien, second lieutenant, secondly, second man, second mate, secondment, second messenger, second mortgage, second name, second nature

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

How to use second mate in a sentence

There was no war then, and he shipped as second-mate on a merchant vessel sailing from Salem.
Stories of Our Naval Heroes|Various
“Commodore has made a signal that strange vessel is a man-of-war bearing down,” said the second-mate, again entering the cabin.
Newton Forster|Captain Frederick Marryat
“Extremely strange, that she does not answer the private signal,” said the colonel to the second-mate.
Newton Forster|Captain Frederick Marryat
The senior apprentice, Thompson, was made acting-second mate and would be in charge of the starboard watch.
The Viking Blood|Frederick William Wallace

Wansley, second-mate, was indeed dead to the world in his berth.
Cursed|George Allan England

British Dictionary definitions for second mate

second mate

noun

the next in command of a merchant vessel after the first mateAlso called: second 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