journeyman

noun jour·ney·man \ ˈjər-nē-mən \

Definition of journeyman

1 :a worker who has learned a trade and works for another person usually by the day

2 :an experienced reliable worker, athlete, or performer especially as distinguished from one who is brilliant or colorful

a good journeyman trumpeter
—New Yorker

a journeyman outfielder

See journeyman defined for English-language learners

See journeyman defined for kids

journeyman was our Word of the Day on 08/23/2016. Hear the podcast!

Recent Examples of journeyman from the Web

Line dance: Jason Peters is away on a personal matter and isn’t expected to play, meaning Lane Johnson moves to left tackle and journeyman Matt Tobin takes over at right tackle.

— les bowen, Philly.com, "Ten things to watch when the Eagles face the Bills," 17 Aug. 2017
Detroit Free Press The Detroit Tigers were trailing by three runs Thursday when manager Brad Ausmus opted to use 31-year-old journeyman Edward Mujica rather than prospect Joe Jimenez.

— george sipple, Detroit Free Press, "Brad Ausmus: Detroit Tigers to use Joe Jimenez in 'softer situations'," 10 Aug. 2017
My father had the luck to grow up next door to Rockwell, modeled for him as a boy, and trained with him as a journeyman illustrator.

— cullen murphy, Vanities, "When Fairfield County Was the Comic-Strip Capital of the World," 9 Aug. 2017
Fifth-year journeyman Darryl Morris, who played 12 games for the Colts last season, is the clubhouse leader.

— stephen holder, Indianapolis Star, "Colts observations: Pagano's most intense camp yet," 8 Aug. 2017
The 57-year-old journeyman, chasing his first PGA Tour Champions major, was keeping pace with a player who owns the second most Champion wins ever.

— callie caplan, baltimoresun.com, "Fred Funk has 'dream finish' hole-in-one in Senior Players Championship third round," 15 July 2017
The 6-foot-7 26-year-old journeyman is entering his second season in Brooklyn, his fifth NBA team in his five-year career.

— staff report, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Brooklyn Nets' Quincy Acy shows off some reel ability in catching a sailfish off Key Biscayne | Video," 8 July 2017
His career formed the origin for Sylvester Stallone's Rocky: a journeyman bum with a good jaw for blows suddenly given the opportunity to fight the world champion.

— christina newland, Esquire, "The 20 Best Documentaries in ESPN's 30 for 30 Series," 29 June 2017
Last year’s maneuvers also included trading Marco Belinelli for the rights to another rookie, Malachi Richardson (No. 22), and plugging in a handful of journeymen to fill out the roster.

— ailene voisin, sacbee.com, "‘Go young, start over’: Divac’s leap of faith upends Kings. Time to stick the landing," 19 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'journeyman.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

The journey in journeyman refers to a sense of the familiar word not often used anymore: "a day's labor." This sense of journey was first used in the 14th century. When journeyman appeared the following century, it originally referred to a person who, having learned a handicraft or trade through an apprenticeship, worked for daily wages. In the 16th century, journeyman picked up a figurative (and mainly deprecatory) sense; namely, "one who drudges for another." These days, however, journeyman has little to do with drudgery, and lots to do with knowing a trade inside out.

Origin and Etymology of journeyman

Middle English, from journey journey, a day's labor + man

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 15th century

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JOURNEYMAN Defined for English Language Learners

journeyman

noun

Definition of journeyman for English Language Learners

: a worker who learns a skill and then works for another person
: a worker, performer, or athlete who is experienced and good but not excellent

JOURNEYMAN Defined for Kids

journeyman

noun jour·ney·man \ ˈjər-nē-mən \

Definition of journeyman for Students

plural journeymen \-mən\

:a worker who has learned a trade and usually works for another person by the day

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Spanish Central: Translation of journeyman Nglish: Translation of journeyman for Spanish speakers Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about journeyman

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Definition of journeyman

journeyman was our Word of the Day on 08/23/2016. Hear the podcast!

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journeyman

Definition of journeyman for English Language Learners

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Origin and Etymology of journeyman

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