cabin boy

noun

: a boy working as servant on a ship

Examples of cabin boy in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
One of the cabin boys who worked by the fishing docks told my sister about a handy trick to save on quarters during pinball play. — Philip Potempa, Chicago Tribune, 28 June 2023 This French girl is said to have disguised herself as a cabin boy to sail with her beloved to North America. — Jack Schnedler, Arkansas Online, 19 May 2025 One day, captured by the wicked pirate Peg Leg Olle, Mo bumps into a resourceful young cabin boy, Hannes, and his pet bird. — Leo Barraclough, Variety, 30 May 2023 National Book Critics Circle Award-winning author Xiaolu Guo recasts Ishmael as a 17-year-old girl disguised as a cabin boy and Ahab as a Black freedman named Seneca, haunted by his father’s legacy of enslavement. — Theara Coleman, TheWeek, 6 Jan. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1670, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of cabin boy was in 1670

Rhymes for cabin boy

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Browse Nearby Words

cabin
cabin boy
cabin car
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Cite this Entry

“Cabin boy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cabin%20boy. Accessed 7 Jul. 2026.

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Kids Definition

cabin boy

noun
: a boy working as a servant on a ship
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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