walker

¹ American  

[waw-ker] / ˈwɔ kər /

noun

1. an enclosing framework on casters or wheels for supporting a baby who is learning to walk.

2. a similar mobility aid, usually a waist-high four-legged framework of lightweight metal, for support or balance while walking.

3. Informal. Usually Walker Walker hound.

4. a person or thing that walks or likes to walk.

   He's a great walker.

5. Theater Slang. an extra or supernumerary.

6. Slang. a musician required by a union contract to be hired and paid full salary even when not needed for performance.

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Walker ² American  

[waw-ker] / ˈwɔ kər /

noun

1. Alice, born 1944, U.S. novelist and short-story writer.

2. David, 1785–1830, U.S. abolitionist.

3. James John Jimmy, 1881–1946, U.S. politician: mayor of New York City 1926–32.

4. John, born 1952, New Zealand track-and-field athlete.

5. Sarah Breedlove 1867–1919, U.S. businesswoman and philanthropist.

6. a city in W Michigan.

7. a male given name.

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walker ¹ British  

/ ˈwɔːkə /

noun

1. a person who walks

2. Also called: baby walker.  a tubular frame on wheels or castors to support a baby learning to walk

3. a similar support for walking, often with rubber feet, for use by disabled or infirm people

4. a woman's escort at a social event

   let me introduce my walker for tonight

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Walker ² British  

/ ˈwɔːkə /

noun

1. Alice ( Malsenior ). born 1944, US writer: her works include In Love and Trouble: Stories of Black Women (1973) and the novels Meridian (1976), The Color Purple (1982), and Possessing the Secret of Joy (1992)

2. Sir John. born 1952, New Zealand middle-distance runner, the first athlete to run one hundred sub-four-minute miles

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Etymology

Origin of walker

First recorded in 1325–75; see origin at walk, -er ¹

Explanation

If you get from one place to another using the power of your own two legs, you're a walker. Whether you stroll, saunter, or stride, you can still describe yourself as a walker. You can also call a walker a pedestrian, or if they walk on wooded trails and up hilly slopes, a hiker. There's an entirely different meaning of this word as well — a walker is also a supportive frame that elderly people or people with disabilities can use to help them get around. Even if you use a walker for stability when you walk, you're still a walker!

Example Sentences

"I'd say 99% of dog walkers are responsible but it only takes that 1% to give every dog walker a bad name."

From BBC • Feb. 20, 2026

He sat on a walker, much thinner than the last time I had seen him.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 31, 2026

"I think it's called a walker, he's just out of his walker, so that tells you that he's not on the pitch."

From Barron's • Jan. 30, 2026

As of last May, Adams had been using a walker for months and dealing with terrible pain because, he said, the cancer had spread to his bones.

From Los Angeles Times • Jan. 13, 2026

My feet drag, as though they’re weighted, and because my back is stooped I end up looking down at my slippers framed by the walker.

From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen

Related Words

• hiker