Definition of publican
1 a
:a Jewish tax collector for the ancient Romans
b
:a collector of taxes or tribute
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Origin and Etymology of publican
Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin publicanus tax farmer, from publicum public revenue, from neuter of publicus
PUBLICAN Defined for English Language Learners
publican
play
noun
Definition of publican for English Language Learners
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: someone who owns or manages a pub
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Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about publican
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