How to say "seaman" in Japanese

• 船員せんいんCommon
  nounCovers 'seaman' as a profession: someone who works on a ship as a crew member. This is the neutral, everyday word for a civilian seafarer or member of a ship's crew.
  レインジャー隊たいは船員せんいんの救助きゅうじょに向むかうことを決きめた。↗

  The rangers decided to go to the sailor's rescue.
• 船乗りふなのりCommon
  nounAlso means a sailor or seaman, but with a more general, somewhat literary or descriptive flavor — a person who goes to sea — rather than a job title on a specific vessel.
  上手じょうずな船乗ふなのりはほんの短時間たんじかんで船ふねになれる。↗

  A good sailor only requires a short time to get his sea legs.
• 上等兵じょうとうへいCommon
  nounNot a civilian seaman at all: this is a military rank, and 'seaman (navy)' is only one of its several glosses alongside private first-class and similar army and marine ranks. Choose it solely for the rank sense.

Use 船員 for a seaman as a member of a ship's crew and 「船乗り」 for a sailor in a general or literary sense; use 上等兵 only for the navy rank corresponding to seaman, not for civilian sailors.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 船員せんいんsailor
• 船乗りふなのりsailor
• 上等兵じょうとうへいprivate first-class (army)
• 海士かいしseaman
• 水夫すいふsailor
• 海員かいいんsailor
• 二等兵にとうへいprivate