waterman
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See also: Waterman
English
Etymology
From Middle English waterman, equivalent to water + -man.
Noun
waterman (plural watermen)
- (obsolete) A seaman, a sailor.
- A man who lives or works on the water; a boatman.
- Someone who distributes or supplies water for a living; a water-carrier.
- 1974, Lawrence Durrell, Monsieur, Faber & Faber, published 1992, page 105:
- An elderly sheik shared this little ceremony with us, and afterwards benignly gave the waterman a coin and made him spurt scented water on his face and beard.
- (dated) Specifically, an attendant on cab stands who supplies water to the horses.
- 1836, Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers 2:
- ‘Here you are, sir,’ shouted a strange specimen of the human race, in a sackcloth coat, and apron of the same, who, with a brass label and number round his neck, looked as if he were catalogued in some collection of rarities. This was the waterman.
- (surfing) A man skilled in multiple aquatic sports disciplines, such as surfing, bodysurfing, undersea diving, canoe paddling, fishing, etc.
Usage notes
- Describing someone as a waterman is the highest honour in the surfing community, reserved for those with long-standing and indisputably significant all-round achievements.
Derived terms
Related terms
References
- Webster's Seventh New Collegiate Dictionary, Springfield, Massachusetts, G.&C. Merriam Co., 1967
Dutch
Etymology
From water (“water”) + man (“man”).
Pronunciation
Audio (file)
Noun
waterman m (plural watermannen, diminutive watermannetje n)
Usage notes
Not to be confused with Waterman ("Aquarius, the eleventh astrological sign in the Zodiac").