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boatswain

 - 3 dictionary results

boat⋅swain

  [boh-suhn; spelling pron. boht-sweyn]
Use boatswain in a Sentence
–noun
a warrant officer on a warship, or a petty officer on a merchant vessel, in charge of rigging, anchors, cables, etc.
Also, bo's'n, bosun.

Origin:
1400–50; late ME bote-swayn. See boat, swain
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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boat·swain also bo's'n or bos'n or bo·sun   (bō'sən)   
n.  A warrant officer or petty officer in charge of a ship's rigging, anchors, cables, and deck crew.

[Middle English botswein : bot, boat; see boat + swein, mate; see swain.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

boatswain 
c.1450, from late O.E. batswegen, from bat "boat" + O.N. sveinn "boy" (see swain). Phonetic spelling bo'sun is attested from 1868.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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