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callboy

American  
[kawl-boi] / ˈkɔlˌbɔɪ /

noun

  1. a boy or man who summons actors, as from their dressing rooms, shortly before they are due to go on stage.

  2. a bellhop.

  3. Also call boy a male prostitute who arranges appointments with clients by telephone.

  4. Railroads Slang. Also call-boy, call boy a railroad employee responsible for ensuring that members of a train crew are on hand for their regular runs and for notifying them of an extra run.

callboy British  
/ ˈkɔːlˌbɔɪ /

noun

  1. a person who notifies actors when it is time to go on stage

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of callboy

First recorded in 1835–45; call + boy

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.