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
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Recent Examples of journeyman from the Web
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Volquez, a native of the Dominican Republic, is the epitome of a baseball journeyman.
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Pachulia, a journeyman playing on his fifth NBA team in 14 seasons, is the only Warriors starter who is not an All-Star.
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Injuries have softened their rotation, leaving journeymen and minor-league call ups to fill in, and before his injury, Paxton was pitching like an ace.
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But Lue, once a journeyman point guard who steered the Cavs to an NBA championship last season, has grown more accepting of his frontman role.
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Worley, a journeyman right-hander making his second start for Miami, allowed only one other hit in an efficient five-inning outing.
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Herrera grounded out on three pitches in the first inning, lined out in the third, grounded out in the sixth, and doubled in the ninth off a journeyman reliever as the Phillies trailed by five runs.
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Characters found in the book are classified as apprentice, journeyman and master to reflect their general skill level.
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
First Known Use: 15th century
JOURNEYMAN Defined for English Language Learners
journeyman
playDefinition of journeyman for English Language Learners
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: a worker who learns a skill and then works for another person
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: a worker, performer, or athlete who is experienced and good but not excellent
JOURNEYMAN Defined for Kids
journeyman
playDefinition of journeyman for Students
journeymen
\-mən\: a worker who has learned a trade and usually works for another person by the day
Learn More about journeyman
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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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