Take in sailor's eye (6)
I believe the answer is:
absorb
'take in' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'sailor's eye' is the wordplay.
'sailor's' becomes 'ab's' (abbreviation for able seaman).
'eye' becomes 'orb' (I've seen this before).
'abs'+'orb'='ABSORB'
(Other definitions for absorb that I've seen before include "Assimilate, ingest" , "Take in, soak up." , "Grip" , "Assimilate or take in as a sponge" , "Suck up or take in" .)