valet

1 of 2

noun

va·​let ˈva-lət  ˈva-(ˌ)lā 

va-ˈlā

1

a

: an employee (as of a hotel or a public facility) who performs personal services for customers

b

: a man's male servant who performs personal services (such as taking care of clothing)

2

: a device (such as a rack or tray) for holding clothing or personal effects

valet

2 of 2

verb

valeted; valeting; valets

transitive verb

: to serve as a valet

Examples of valet in a Sentence

Verb

She runs her own valeting business.

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Smith is continuing to appeal U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon's dismissal of the case with Trump's two co-defendants, his longtime valet Walt Nauta and Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira. —Peter Charalambous, ABC News, 26 Nov. 2024

There is a gear valet for winter and summer, as well as nearly 10,000 square feet of space for meetings, weddings and social events. —Larry Olmsted, Forbes, 25 Nov. 2024

Verb

Penny pincher alert: There’s street parking, so no need to valet. —Madeleine Marr, Miami Herald, 22 May 2024

The artists and actual bohemians who founded the club would not be admitted now, but they might be allowed to valet-park the cars. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 4 Apr. 2023

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English vadlet, valet, varlet "male servant, groom, knight's attendant," borrowed from Anglo-French, "young man of noble birth serving a lord, boy, servant," going back to Gallo-Romance *vassellittus, diminutive of *vassellus, diminutive of early Medieval Latin vassus "serf, servant, vassal" — more at vassal

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Verb

1840, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing valet

• valet de chambre
• valet parking
• valet service

Kids Definition

valet

noun

va·​let

ˈval-ā,

va-ˈlā,

ˈval-ət

1

: a male servant who takes care of a man's clothes and does personal services

2

: a hotel employee who does personal services for guests