jack-tar

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jack-tar

also Jack-tar (jăk′tär′)

A sailor.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

jack′-tar′

or Jack′ Tar′,

a sailor.

[1775–85]

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Noun

Jack-tar - a man who serves as a sailor

mariner, old salt, sea dog, seafarer, seaman, gob, Jack, tar

able seaman, able-bodied seaman - a seaman in the merchant marine; trained in special skills

boatswain, bo's'n, bos'n, bosun, bo'sun - a petty officer on a merchant ship who controls the work of other seamen

deckhand, roustabout - a member of a ship's crew who performs manual labor

helmsman, steerer, steersman - the person who steers a ship

bargee, bargeman, lighterman - someone who operates a barge

ship's officer, officer - a person authorized to serve in a position of authority on a vessel; "he is the officer in charge of the ship's engines"

pilot - a person qualified to guide ships through difficult waters going into or out of a harbor

crewman, sailor - any member of a ship's crew

sea lawyer - an argumentative and contentious seaman

whaler - a seaman who works on a ship that hunts whales

jack-tar

noun

A person engaged in sailing or working on a ship:

jack (uppercase), mariner, navigator, sailor, sea dog, seafarer, seaman.

Informal: salt, tar.

Slang: gob.

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

And hardly had the carriage turned the corner and rattled into the high road with this inexplicable pair, than the whistle broke forth - prolonged, and low and tremulous; and the groom, already so far relieved, vented the rest of his surprise in one simple English word, friendly to the mouth of Jack-tar and the sooty pitman, and hurried to spread the news round the servants' hall of Naseby House.

View in context

Jack and Gill have been the prototypical names for every ordinary man and woman since at least the 15th Century, and then there are examples like Jack-of-all-trades, Jack-Tar for a sailor, lumberjack and steeplejack.

Where did they get that name? They denote who you are and where you live and belong. TONY HENDERSON reports on the wonderful world of names

In those days, Halifax, Nova Scotia, was a bustling British colonial port, and there were plenty of thirsty redcoats and jack-tars about.