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yeoman

Pronunciation: /ˈjəʊ.mən/

The English word “yeoman” has 10 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. An official providing honorable service in a royal or high noble household, ranking between a squire and a page. Especially, a yeoman of the guard, a member of a ceremonial bodyguard to the UK monarch (not to be confused with a Yeoman Warder).
  2. A dependable, diligent, or loyal worker or someone who does a great service.
  3. A former class of small freeholders who farm their own land; a commoner of good standing.
  4. A subordinate, deputy, aide, or assistant.
  5. A Yeoman Warder.
  6. A clerk in the US Navy, and US Coast Guard.
  7. In a vessel of war, the person in charge of the storeroom.
  8. A member of the Yeomanry Cavalry, officially chartered in 1794 originating around the 1760s.
  9. A member of the Imperial Yeomanry, officially created in 1890s and renamed in 1907.
  10. Any of various nymphalid butterflies of the genus Cirrochroa, of Asia and Australasia.

Etymology

From Middle English yeman, yoman, of disputed etymology: * From Old English *ġēamann, from Proto-West Germanic *gawamann, variant of *gauwjamann (compare Old Frisian gāman (“villager”), Middle High German göuman (“peasant”)), compound of Proto-West Germanic *gawi (“shire, district”) (compare Old English -ġē, -ġēa (“district, region”) (in ælġē, Sūþriġēa), West Frisian gea, goa, Dutch gouw, German…

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.