publican

noun

pub·li·can | \ ˈpə-bli-kən

How to pronounce publican (audio)

\

Definition of publican

1a : a Jewish tax collector for the ancient Romans

b : a collector of taxes or tribute

2 chiefly British : the licensee of a public house

Examples of publican in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

In the kitchen there was Rob, the publican, who had basically given up cooking, and Andy, a northerner who was miserable and really the guy in charge of the kitchen. — Dan Hunter, Bon Appetit, "The First Three Kitchens Where I Washed Dishes, Broke Glass, and Became a Chef," 5 May 2017

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

Keep scrolling for more

Learn More about publican

Dictionary Entries near publican

public-address system

public administration

public assistance

Statistics for publican

Look-up Popularity

Time Traveler for publican

The first known use of publican was in the 13th century

See more words from the same century

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for publican

publican

noun

English Language Learners Definition of publican

British, formal : someone who owns or manages a pub

See the full definition for publican in the English Language Learners Dictionary

WORD OF THE DAY

magniloquent

grandiloquent, ostentatious, or bombastic

Test Your Vocabulary

Original Meanings Quiz

Which of the following is the earliest known sense of the word awe?

Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?

TAKE THE QUIZ

Word Winder's CrossWinder

Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.

TAKE THE QUIZ

Words at Play

Ask the Editors

Word Games