able-bodied seaman
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6.6
- noun
- /ˈeɪbəlˈbɑːdɪd ˈsiːmən/
- Jargon
:
marinero habilitado
- The crew needed one more able-bodied seaman to fill the last position on the ship before departure.
Examples
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You're what they call an able-bodied seaman?
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You told me you were an able-bodied seaman, and you were looking for work.
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Demeter needs three able-bodied seamen.
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Need one able-bodied seaman, one oiler and one baker.
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(And the name "Kowalski" comes from the old TV show, "Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea," whose cast featured an admiral, a lieutenant commander, the captain of the sub, the chief petty officer, and one able-bodied seaman who apparently did all of the work named Kowalski.)
Blog text (5) -
As an able-bodied seaman, he was responsible for managing the deck during the stormy voyage.
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During his training, he learned the essential skills required to become an able-bodied seaman in the merchant marine.
Synonyms
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1.0
A person who works on a ship as a crew member but not an officer
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2.8
A person who works on a ship as a crew member below the officers
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7.1
A sailor who is trained and has a certificate to work on a ship's deck
A person on a ship who is fully trained to do all normal jobs
A woman sailor trained and qualified for special duties on a ship
A woman sailor on a merchant ship who is fully trained in deck and safety duties
A sailor who works on a ship
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase is largely compositional: 'able-bodied' (physically capable) + 'seaman' (sailor) yields a straightforward sense of a physically fit or competent sailor that a B1 learner who knows both constituents will grasp. However, the term also encodes a maritime rank/skill distinction (trained/qualified above an ordinary seaman) that is a specialized nuance not fully predictable from the words alone, so full technical meaning may require exposure.
Etymology
Able-bodied seaman originally described a sailor who was physically strong and experienced. Ships marked someone as able-bodied to show they could do the heavy work on deck, so the label able-bodied seaman came to mean 'a skilled sailor' who is higher than an ordinary seaman.