Sir John Hawkyns
- proper noun
- NSFW
- Sir John Hawkyns played a significant role in naval battles against the Spanish Armada.
Examples
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I passed word of this on to Sir John.
Fiction book (2001) -
"Ah, at last," said Sir John.
Fiction book (2001) -
"You seem to have me confused with the king," said Sir John.
Fiction book (2001) -
" Sir John laughed out loud at that.
Fiction book (2001) -
I knew that Sir John would not lie regarding such a matter, and so I accepted that Clarissa had praised me.
Fiction book (2001) -
If I'm refused, then I fear I shall have to transfer two of the night men forward to days. "Is it truly so bad, Sir John?" "Bad enough," said he, "that I must ask you to watch over Clarissa on this, her day of liberty."
Fiction book (2001) -
That came as an additional duty—one in addition, that is, to serving Sir John as amanuensis, doing the buying for the household each day in Covent Garden, and running every conceivable errand for the court.
Fiction book (2001) -
To London. " And how did you come to meet Sir John?" I had never told her the tale of my arrival in London: how I had been duped by a thief-taker and brought, falsely accused, before the magistrate's court at Number 4 Bow Street, and how Sir John Fielding saw through this cruel deception and sent the conspirators on their way.
Fiction book (2001) -
During the meeting, Sir John expressed his thoughts on the importance of naval strategy.
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In his travels, Sir John encountered various pirates and challenged them on the high seas.
Surface Forms
Morphology
Sir + John + Hawkyns
Knowing 'Sir' (a title) and 'John' (a personal name) allows a learner to infer that this is a named person with an honorific, so part of the meaning (that it is a titled individual) is transparent. However, the specific biographical information (dates, role as an English naval commander/privateer/slave trader) cannot be derived from the constituent words alone, so the full meaning is not predictable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Sir John Hawkyns was a 16th-century English sea captain and privateer who helped modernize ships and played a key role in fighting the Spanish Armada. Because he also took part in the early slave trade, his name is tied both to England's rise at sea and to that darker part of history.
