Word.ws English Dictionary

publican

Syllables: pub·lic·an/ˈpʌblɪk(ə)n/US/ˈpʌblək(ə)n/

publican noun: the landlord (manager or owner) of a public house (“a bar or tavern, often also selling food and sometimes lodging; a pub”).

publican: the landlord (manager or owner) of a public house (“a bar or tavern, often also selling food and...
Image: Alan Spencer, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun (1)

publican (plural publicans)

  1. (Ireland, UK) The landlord (manager or owner) of a public house (“a bar or tavern, often also selling food and sometimes lodging; a pub”).
    • I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o' beer, / The publican 'e up an 'sez, 'We serve no red-coats here.'1890, Rudyard Kipling, “Tommy”, in Barrack-Room Ballads and Other Verses, 3rd edition, London: Methuen & Co. […], published 1892, →OCLC, page 6
  2. (Commonwealth, broadly) The manager or owner of a hotel.
    Synonyms:
    hotelier

Noun (2)

publican (plural publicans)

  1. (Ancient-Rome, historical) A tax collector, especially one working in Judea and Galilee during New Testament times (1st century C.E.) who was generally regarded as sinful for extorting more tax than was due, and as a traitor for serving the Roman Empire.
    • Matthevv vvhiche vvas other vvyſe alſo called Leui, beyng of a Puplican made an Apoſtle, firſt of all others compoſed and vvrote in Jevvrye, the ghoſpell of Chriſte in the Hebrue tounge, […]1549 February 10 (Gregorian calendar; indicated as 1548), Jerome, “The Paraphrase of Erasmus vpon the Gospell of Saincte Matthew. The Lyfe of Sainct Matthew […].”, in Nicolas Udall [i.e., Nicholas...
    • [T]he Publicans, that is to ſaye, the cuſtomers and takers vp of tolles, […]1549 February 10 (Gregorian calendar; indicated as 1548), Erasmus, “The Paraphrase of Erasmus vpon the Ghospell of S. Luke. The .iii. Chapter.”, in Nicolas Udall [i.e., Nicholas Udall], transl., The...
  2. (archaic, broadly) Any person who collects customs duties, taxes, tolls, or other forms of public revenue.
    • Another ſort there be vvho vvhen they hear that all things ſhall be order'd, all things regulated and ſetl'd; nothing vvritt'n but vvhat paſſes through the cuſtom-houſe of certain Publicans that have the tunaging and the poundaging of all free ſpok'n truth, vvill ſtrait give themſelvs up into your...1644, John Milton, Areopagitica; a Speech of Mr. John Milton for the Liberty of Unlicenc’d Printing, to the Parlament of England, London: [s.n.], →OCLC, page 27
    • […] I am fallen into the hands of Publicans and Sequeſtrators, and they have taken all from me, vvhat novv? let me look about me. They have left me the Sun and the Moon, Fire and vvater, a loving vvife, and many friends to pity me, and ſome to relieve me, […]1651, Jer[emy] Taylor, “Of Christian Sobriety”, in The Rule and Exercises of Holy Living. […], 2nd edition, London: […] Francis Ashe […], →OCLC, section VI (Of Contentedness in All Estates and...
  3. (archaic, figuratively) One regarded as extorting money from others by charging high prices.
  4. (archaic, figuratively) A person excommunicated from the church; an excommunicant or excommunicate; also, a person who does not follow a Christian religion; a heathen, a pagan.

Noun (3) capitalized: Publican

Publican (plural Publicans)

  1. Synonym of Arnoldist.
    Synonyms:
    Arnoldist

publican meaning in Kannada, Tagalog and Arabic

publican in Kannada

ಪಥಿಕಗೃಹ ನಡೆಸುವವನು

publican in Tagalog

tax collector, especially one working in Judea and Galilee during New Testament times
publikano

publican in Arabic

landlord of a public house
دِهْقَان dihqān, دُهْقَان duhqān, دِهْقَانَة dihqāna
tax collector, especially one working in Judea and Galilee during New Testament times
عَشَّار ʕaššār

Examples of publican in a sentence

  • Hovv like a favvning Publican he lookes.c. 1596–1598 (date written), W[illiam] Shakespeare, The Excellent History of the Merchant of Venice. […] (First Quarto), [London]: […]...
  • [I]f he [a brother who trespasses against one] neglect to heare the Church, let him be vnto thee as an heathen man, and a Publicane.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Matthew 18:17, column 1:
  • [T]here was a man named Zacheus, which was the cheefe among the Publicanes, and he was rich.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Luke 19:2, column 2:
  • They were overrun by publicans, farmers of the taxes, agents, confiscators, usurers, bankers, those numerous and insatiable bodies, which always flourish in a burthened and complicated revenue.1760, Edmund Burke, “An Essay towards an Abridgment of the English History. […]. Chapter III. The Reduction of Britain by the Romans.”, in...

Synonyms of publican

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All synonyms of publican

Forms of publican

pluralpublicans
alternative formpublicane
alternative formpuplican
pluralPublicans

Plural of publican: publicans

Origin of publican

Probably from public house (“(Britain) bar or tavern, often also selling food and sometimes lodging, pub”) or public (“open to all members of a community”) + -an (suffix forming agent nouns), apparently originally used humorously.

From Middle English publican [and other forms], from Anglo-Norman publican, pupplican, Middle French publicain, and Old French publican, publicain, pupplican (“tax collector”) (modern French publicain), and from their etymon Latin pūblicānus (“tax collector”), from pūblicum (“state revenue”) + -ānus (suffix meaning ‘of or pertaining to’, usually indicating relationships of origin, position, or possession). Pūblicum is a noun use of the neuter form of pūblicus (“of or belonging to the people, state, or community; general, public”), ultimately from Proto-Italic *poplos (“army”). Sense 3.2 (“person excommunicated from the church; person who does not follow a Christian religion”) refers to Matthew 18:17 of the Bible: see the King James Version quotation under sense 1. Cognates * Catalan publicà * Italian pubblicano * Middle Dutch publicaen, puppilicaen, pupplicaen (modern Dutch publicaan (obsolete), publikaan) * Middle High German publicān, publicāne (early modern German Publican). * Middle Low German pūblicān * Old Occitan publican, puplican * Portuguese publicano * Spanish publicano

Perhaps from Paulician.

Words that rhyme with publican

Questions about publican

What does publican mean?
Publican means the landlord (manager or owner) of a public house (“a bar or tavern, often also selling food and sometimes lodging; a pub”).
What is publican in Kannada?
Publican in Kannada is ಪಥಿಕಗೃಹ ನಡೆಸುವವನು. See Publican meaning in Kannada.
How do you use publican in a sentence?
Hovv like a favvning Publican he lookes.
What part of speech is publican?
Publican is a noun.
How do you pronounce publican?
Publican is pronounced /ˈpʌblɪk(ə)n/ (UK).
What is the plural of publican?
The plural of publican is publicans.

Words near publican in the dictionary

  1. public/private partnership
  2. public/private partnerships
  3. publicable
  4. publical
  5. publically
  6. publican
  7. publicans
  8. publicate
  9. publicated
  10. publicates
  11. publicating

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: publican (page history and authors); Publican (page history and authors); publican (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-publican.wav.

Cite this entry: “publican.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/publican. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.