servant

noun

ser·​vant ˈsər-vənt 

: one that serves others

a public servant

especially : one that performs duties about the person or home of a master or personal employer

servanthood

ˈsər-vənt-ˌhu̇d 

noun

servantless adjective

Synonyms

• daily [British]
• domestic
• flunky
• flunkey
• flunkie
• lackey
• menial
• retainer
• steward

Examples of servant in a Sentence

the wealthy family had servants to clean and cook for them

Recent Examples on the Web

Cheon-yeong grows up as Jong-ryeo’s slave, teaching him to fight but also being whipped for his failures, as was the custom for such servants. —Joan MacDonald, Forbes, 22 Oct. 2024

The household in the 1970s was routinely described as a three-ring circus filled with rowdy kids, lost pets and haggard servants who often quit in frustration, saying Ethel was difficult to work for. —Valerie J. Nelson, Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2024

Adams plays Mother’s growing exasperation in moments like that with the infuriated impatience of the countless women who ever felt like unpaid round-the-clock servants, with husbands who remain willfully oblivious to the demands of the job. —David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 8 Sep. 2024

Tackling the opera’s challenges with palpable gladness, Costanzo sings the servant Figaro, his betrothed Susanna, and a whole palace worth of erotic schemers, as virtuosic lip-synching performers act out the scenes. —The New Yorker, 6 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English servant, sarvaunt "person serving a master or lord, retainer, attendant," borrowed from Anglo-French, noun derivative from past participle of servir "to be in attendance on, serve entry 1"

Note: Compare sergeant.

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing servant

• bond servant
• civil servant
• fellow servant
• indentured servant
• public servant

Kids Definition

servant

noun

ser·​vant ˈsər-vənt 

: one that serves others

especially : a person hired to perform household or personal services

Etymology

Middle English servant "servant," from early French servant (same meaning), from a form of servir "to serve," from Latin servire "to be a slave, serve," from servus "slave, servant" — related to serf

Legal Definition

servant

noun

ser·​vant

: a person who serves others: as

a

: an individual who performs duties about the person or home of a master or personal employer

b

: a person in the employ and subject to the direction or control of an individual or company see also respondeat superior compare agent, master