journeyman
noun
New Yorker
Did you know?
The journey in journeyman refers to a sense of the familiar word not often used anymore: "a day's labor." This sense of journey was first used in the 14th century. When journeyman appeared the following century, it originally referred to a person who, having learned a handicraft or trade through an apprenticeship, worked for daily wages. In the 16th century, journeyman picked up a figurative (and mainly deprecatory) sense; namely, "one who drudges for another." These days, however, journeyman has little to do with drudgery, and lots to do with knowing a trade inside out.
Examples of journeyman in a Sentence
Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 28 Mar. 2025
For a certain type of journeyman ballplayer, the kind of guy with a bat-and-glove bindle and a stubborn dream, the South Side of Chicago was a hot winter destination.
—Jon Greenberg, New York Times, 27 Mar. 2025
Here, journeyman actor Fiona Dourif — whose previous credits on the small screen have included Chucky, The Blacklist and The Purge — talks about playing a doc who turns heads for her bedside manner and the electronic bracelet around her ankle.
—Lynette Rice, Deadline, 27 Mar. 2025
James Mangold isn’t afraid of being thought of as a journeyman director.
—Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 27 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for journeyman
Cite this Entry
“Journeyman.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/journeyman. Accessed 3 Apr. 2025.
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journeyman
noun
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