A sailor meets Arab turning up to see lover (9)
I believe the answer is:
inamorata
'lover' is the definition.
(I know that inamorata is a type of lover)
'a sailor meets arab turning up' is the wordplay.
'sailor' becomes 'tar' (tar can mean a sailor).
'meets' says to put letters next to each other.
'arab' becomes 'Omani' (someone from Oman).
'turning up' is a reversal indicator.
'a'+'tar'+'omani'='ataromani'
'ataromani' in reverse letter order is 'INAMORATA'.
'to see' acts as a link.
(Other definitions for inamorata that I've seen before include "A woman loved" , "6 across [BOSOM] friend" , "Someone fancies her" , "Girlfriend" , "Woman beloved" .)