swabby

American  

[swob-ee] / ˈswɒb i /

Or swabbie

noun

plural

swabbies

1. Slang. (in the Navy or Coast Guard) a sailor; gob.

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Etymology

Origin of swabby

First recorded in 1940–45; swab + -y ²

Example Sentences

“I’m a swabby by choice,” he told me once.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

He seems a bit irritated that his authority has been undermined by the parrot and the swabby.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

The captain’s eyeball fixes on Carlyle, burning at the insubordination—a lowly swabby second-guessing his order.

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

His mistress was also "Dutch," a "great swabby, fat woman," with a very ill disposition.

From The Underground Railroad A Record of Facts, Authentic Narratives, Letters, &c., Narrating the Hardships, Hair-Breadth Escapes and Death Struggles of the Slaves in Their Efforts for Freedom, As Related by Themselves and Others, or Witnessed by the Author. by Still, William

How she shrank from the touch of his soft, swabby hand!

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 02, No. 08, June 1858 by Various