captain's servant

noun

Before 1796, the rating of a boy entering the Royal Navy at about the age of twelve before becoming a midshipman.

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Meanings

nouncaptain's servant (plural captain's servants)

plural captain's servants

  1. historicalnauticalBefore 1796, the rating of a boy entering the Royal Navy at about the age of twelve before becoming a midshipman.

    "When one reads of a distinguished naval officer having been "a captain's servant," it does not mean that he blacked the captain's boots, mixed his grog, and emptied his slops, but that he entered the service under a captain's protection."

    1905, John Masefield, Sea Life in Nelson's Time

Translations

Hebrew נַעַר הַקֶּפְּטֵן
  • נַעַר הַקֶּפְּטֵןApprentice boy in the RN
Cite this entry
APA

captain's servant. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/captain's%20servant

MLA

“captain's servant.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/captain's%20servant. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “captain's servant,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/captain's%20servant.

Source: captain's servant on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.