Footman
name, noun ·2 syllables ·Uncommon ·Advanced level
Definitions
- 1 A soldier who marches and fights on foot; a foot soldier. archaic
- 2 a man employed as a servant in a large establishment (as a palace) to run errands and do chores wordnet
- 3 A man in waiting; a male servant whose duties are to attend the door, the carriage, the table, etc.
"[…] on October 29, 1888, the Russian imperial train was derailed at Borki by defective track, and twenty-one persons were killed. Although these did not include the Emperor Alexander III, who escaped with a bruising, a footman serving coffee to him at the critical moment, and his dog, which was lying on the floor beside him, were both killed on the spot."
- 4 A servant who runs in front of his master's carriage. historical
"When he travelled by coach the vehicle was accompanied by his liveried footmen running alongside to ensure its smooth passage (footmen would not be indoor servants until a century later)."
- 5 A metallic stand with four feet, for keeping anything warm before a fire.
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- 6 A moth of the family Arctiidae (or subfamily Arctiinae); -- so called from its livery-like colors.
- 7 A moth of the family Arctiidae (or subfamily Arctiinae); -- so called from its livery-like colors.; especially, a common footman (Manulea lurideola)
- 8 A bar that connects the treadle of a spinning wheel to the wheel.
- 1 A surname.
Example
More examples"He came back two hours later and received the same answer, accompanied by a rather dubious look from the footman."
Etymology
From Middle English fotman, footman, foteman (“foot soldier, running footman”), from Old English *fōtman, *fōtmann (attested only as Old English fēþman, fēþemann (“footman”), equivalent to foot + man.
Related phrases
More for "footman"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.