gownsman

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English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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From gown +‎ -s- +‎ man.

Noun

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gownsman (plural gownsmen)

  1. One whose professional habit is a gown, such as a divine, a lawyer, or a member of certain English universities.
    Hyponym: gownie
    • 1950, Mervyn Peake, Gormenghast, London: Eyre & Spottiswoode, →OCLC:
      The two gownsmen lowered the rigid body. It lay straight as a board, supported by no more than its head on the chair-back, and its heels on the ground.
  2. (archaic) A civilian, in distinction from a soldier.

Derived terms

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