footman

noun

foot·​man ˈfu̇t-mən How to pronounce footman (audio)
1
a
archaic : a traveler on foot : pedestrian
2
a
: a servant in livery formerly attending a rider or required to run in front of his master's carriage
b
: a servant who serves at table, tends the door, and runs errands

Examples of footman in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Denker tries to take advantage of the new footman but Thomas steps in to get revenge. Tom Fitzgerald and Lorenzo Marquez, Town & Country, 17 May 2022 The footman died in the trenches during World War I, and Lizzie never remarried. Penelope Green, New York Times, 6 May 2023 When the mortified footman offered his resignation, the queen refused, assuming that Andrew had deserved it. Simon Usborne, Town & Country, 13 Mar. 2022 And then a footman would promptly shut the window. Town & Country, 10 Jan. 2023 Whether that's bribing a footman or something. ELLE, 26 Mar. 2022 The departure of Fawcett — who rose from being a footman to Queen Elizabeth to Charles's valet and ultimately to running the charity — comes two months after a series of newspaper articles about how official honors and British citizenship were allegedly sought on behalf of a Saudi businessman. Simon Perry, PEOPLE.com, 12 Nov. 2021 Last week, a black sign was pinned to the Buckingham Palace gates by a footman, and overnight thousands gathered there to lay flowers, letters, and candles, and pay their final respects to the longest-running royal ruler of modern times. Becky Lucas, Condé Nast Traveler, 13 Sep. 2022 The couple's onetime footman, Sidney Johnson, would later tell the New York Times about that night. Chloe Foussianes, Town & Country, 13 Nov. 2022 See More

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

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

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

Dictionary Entries Near footman

Cite this Entry

“Footman.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/footman. Accessed 2 Oct. 2023.

Kids Definition

footman

noun
foot·​man -mən How to pronounce footman (audio)
1
: an infantry soldier
2
: a male servant who lets in visitors and waits on the table

More from Merriam-Webster on footman

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