footmen

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.
   • […] on October 29, 1888, the Russian imperial train was derailed at Borki by defective track, and twenty-one persons were killed. Although these did not include the Emperor Alexander III, who escaped with a bruising, a footman serving coffee to him at the critical moment, and his dog, which was...1945 September and October, C. Hamilton Ellis, “Royal Trains—V”, in Railway Magazine, pages 251–252
3. (historical) A servant who runs in front of his master's carriage.
   • When he travelled by coach the vehicle was accompanied by his liveried footmen running alongside to ensure its smooth passage (footmen would not be indoor servants until a century later).2016, Anna Keay, chapter 8, in The Last Royal Rebel, London: Bloomsbury

   Synonyms:

   runner, running footman

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.

   Synonyms:

   footman moth

   1. Especially, a common footman (Manulea lurideola).

See all 8 meanings of footman