Definition

1. Noun:
   • A man who operates a ferry: A person, specifically male, whose job is to transport people, vehicles, or goods across a body of water using a ferryboat. He is responsible for navigating the vessel and ensuring the safety of passengers and cargo during the crossing.

Usage Examples

• Noun:
  • The old ferryman has been crossing this river for forty years.
  • We paid the ferryman to take us to the other side of the lake.
  • In the myth, Charon is the ferryman who carries souls across the river Styx.

Advanced Usage

• "To pay the ferryman": This phrase is often used metaphorically to mean facing the consequences of one's actions or settling a final debt, alluding to the mythological concept of paying Charon for passage to the afterlife.
  • He lived a reckless life and finally had to pay the ferryman.

Variants and Related Words

• Ferry (n/verb): The boat used for transport, or the act of transporting via such a boat.
  • We took the ferry to the island.
• Ferrywoman (n): A woman who operates a ferry.
  • She is the first ferrywoman on this route.

Synonyms

• Boatman: A man who rows or sails a small boat, often for hire.
• Waterman: A boatman, especially one who works on rivers or canals.

Related Phrases

• Ferryman's fee: The charge for passage on a ferry.
  • The ferryman's fee has increased this year.

Related Idioms

• Like the ferryman, always crossing but never arriving: Used to describe someone who is constantly busy with a repetitive task but never seems to reach a final destination or achieve a lasting goal.
  • His work as a mediator felt like being the ferryman, always crossing but never arriving at a resolution.

Noun

1. a man who operates a ferry