footman

Etymology

Middle English foteman, footman, fotman (“foot soldier, running footman”)

Noun

footman (plural footmen)

1. (archaic) A soldier who marches and fights on foot; a foot soldier.
2. A man in waiting; a male servant whose duties are to attend the door, the carriage, the table, etc.
   • 1959, Georgette Heyer, chapter 1, in The Unknown Ajax:

     And no use for anyone to tell Charles that this was because the Family was in mourning for Mr Granville Darracott […]: Charles might only have been second footman at Darracott Place for a couple of months when that disaster occurred, but no one could gammon him into thinking that my lord cared a spangle for his heir.

3. (historical) A servant who runs in front of his master's carriage.
4. A metallic stand with four feet, for keeping anything warm before a fire.
5. A moth of the family Arctiidae (or subfamily Arctiinae); -- so called from its livery-like colors.
   1. especially, the common footman (Manulea lurideola)

References

• footman in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• footman in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• footman at OneLook Dictionary Search
• “footman” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary, 2001–2018.

Noun

footman

1. Alternative form of foteman