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yeoman definition

yeo·man (mən)

noun pl. yeomen -·men (-mən)

  1. Historical, Brit.
    1. an attendant or manservant in a royal or noble household
    2. an assistant or subordinate, as to a sheriff
    3. a freeholder of a class below the gentry, who worked his own land
  2. Brit.
    1. a person who owns and cultivates a relatively small tract of land
    2. yeoman of the (royal) guard
    3. a member of the yeomanry (sense )
  3. U.S. Navy a petty officer assigned to clerical duty

Etymology: ME yeman, prob. contr. < yengman, yung man, lit., young man

adjective

of or characteristic of yeomen

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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