livery

1 of 2

noun

liv·​ery ˈli-və-rē How to pronounce livery (audio)
ˈliv-rē
plural liveries
1
a
: a concern offering vehicles (such as boats) for rent
a canoe livery
an automobile livery
b
: the feeding, stabling, and care of horses for pay
2
a
chiefly British : an identifying design (as on a vehicle) that designates ownership
b
: a servant's uniform
c
: the distinctive clothing or badge formerly worn by the retainers (see retainer entry 1 sense 1) of a person of rank
d
: distinctive dress : garb
a nun's traditional livery
3
: the act of delivering legal possession of property
4
archaic : the apportioning of provisions especially to servants : allowance
5
archaic
a
: one's retainers or retinue
b
: the members of a British livery company

livery

2 of 2

adjective

1
: resembling liver
2
: suggesting liver disorder

Examples of livery in a Sentence

Noun the limousine chauffeur was easily distinguished from the cab drivers by his livery
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
Aside from that, the most notable thing about the team’s new car, C44, is its neon-green livery. Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 8 Mar. 2024 Porsche race cars have worn their fair share of famous racing liveries over the years. Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 27 Feb. 2024 Ars has followed the development of Porsche's 963, and four examples were entered in this year's race—three in the rainbow hues of the factory Penske Porsche team, one a golden Hertz livery for the independent Jota team. Jonathan M. Gitlin, Ars Technica, 12 June 2023 On Friday, the white contraption in Police Department livery sat amid a mountain of cardboard boxes, separated from the commuting masses by a plate-glass window. Hurubie Meko, New York Times, 2 Feb. 2024 The purple and white color scheme in the interior didn’t match the airline’s livery. Christopher Elliott, King Features Syndicate, The Mercury News, 19 Jan. 2024 The car sports a gorgeous white and red livery that identifies it as an emergency vehicle and features the CEA logo along the side. Bryan Hood, Robb Report, 23 Jan. 2024 We were being pulled by a half-century-old diesel-electric locomotive, whose red-and-green livery paid tribute to the Italian flag. Taras Grescoe, Travel + Leisure, 13 Jan. 2024 Naveed Sarwar, the livery cab driver who chauffeured Majors and Jabbari the night of their March 2023 dispute, was one of the witnesses to present his account on Monday. Alexandra Del Rosario, Los Angeles Times, 14 Dec. 2023
Adjective
Across the street is a livery cab service owned by Kevin Rosario (Jimmy Smits), who came to New York from Puerto Rico and poured his hopes into his daughter, Nina (Leslie Grace). New York Times, 9 June 2021 During the pandemic, some local fleet managers who rented cars to Uber and Lyft drivers re-registered the vehicles for non-livery use and began renting to folks making deliveries for companies like DoorDash and Uber Eats. Anne Kadet, WSJ, 8 June 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'livery.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French liveree, livree, literally, delivery, from liverer to deliver, from Latin liberare to free — more at liberate

Adjective

see liver entry 1

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 4

Adjective

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of livery was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near livery

Cite this Entry

“Livery.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/livery. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

livery

noun
liv·​ery
ˈliv-(ə-)rē
plural liveries
1
: a special uniform worn by the servants of a wealthy household
a footman in livery
2
: the clothing worn to distinguish an association of persons
the livery of a school
3
a
: the feeding, care, and stabling of horses for pay
b
: the keeping of horses and vehicles for hire

Medical Definition

livery

adjective
liv·​ery ˈliv-ə-rē How to pronounce livery (audio)
: suggesting liver disorder : liverish

More from Merriam-Webster on livery

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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