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Henchman
Definitions
- 1 A loyal and trusted follower or subordinate.
- 2 a man who assists in a plot wordnet
- 3 A person who supports a political figure chiefly out of selfish interests.
"The glib sophistries of the special pleader and the verdant gullibility of the public; the ridiculous, now happily fast disappearing partisan bias of the voter and the venal instincts of the political henchman; the lack of proper moral stamina in much of our public press, and the tardiness of practical public appreciation where journals are true to the people's interests the fear of the vengeance;"
- 4 An assistant member of a criminal gang.
"Most of the carpet joints were run by the mobsters and local henchmen associated with the Mayfield Road Gang, but Peter Schmidt's Playtorium and Glenn Rendezvous were also included."
- 5 A page to a prince or other person of high rank. obsolete
"Henchmen had placed, as was their habit, each warrior's gear and trappings above his pile of skins."
Etymology
From Middle English henxman (“page, attendant”), from Old English *hengstmann, *hengestmann (“groom”, literally “horseman”), from hengst, hengest (“stallion, horse, steed, gelding”) (from Proto-Germanic *hangistaz (“stallion”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱanḱest-, *kankest- (“horse”)) + mann (“man”). Cognate with archaic German Hengstmann (“a groom”), Icelandic hestamaður (“horseman, groom”).
See also for "henchman"
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