Word of the Day – Lascar

Lascar (noun)

las-ker

An East Indian sailor

First recorded in 1620–30; from Portuguese, short for lasquarin “soldier,” from Urdu lashkarī, from Persian, equivalent to lashkar “army” + -ī a suffix indicating relationship or origin; lasquarin shows spontaneous nasalization that occurs in Portuguese, as also in sim “yes,” from Latin sīc ( Spanish sí, Italian sì, French si )

Example sentences

“The lascar shuffled along slowly, feeling the ship’s ropes with his feet..”