plumber
Americannoun
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plumbers
plural
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a person who installs and repairs piping, fixtures, appliances, and appurtenances in connection with the water supply, drainage systems, etc., both in and out of buildings.
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Slang. an undercover operative or spy hired to detect or stop leaks of news or secret information, often using questionable or illegal methods, as illegal entry or wiretapping.
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Obsolete. a worker in lead or similar metals.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of plumber
1375–1425; 1965–70 plumber for def. 2; late Middle English, spelling variant of Middle English plowber ≪ Late Latin plumbārius leadworker; replacing Middle English plummer < Anglo-French; Old French plummier < Latin, as above. See plumb, -er 2
Explanation
A plumber is someone whose job includes fixing pipes and installing water and sewage systems. If your kitchen sink is clogged, a plumber is the person to call. Plumbers's work ranges from relatively simple tasks like repairing toilets and removing clogs from drains, to much more complicated jobs including replacing all the old corroded pipes in a bathroom floor with new ones. The word plumber has been around since ancient Rome, when a plumber was "anyone who works with lead," and lead was a common material for pipes, baths, drains, and conduits. Fixing anything made of lead (which included roofs) made someone a plumber back then.
Vocabulary lists containing plumber
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Josefa Ippolito-Shepherd, a senior who works as a public-health scientist, called a plumber when she started feeling sick from fumes in her Washington, D.C., home—a smell she described as “like feces.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026
Even though people are willing to spend $5,000 on a toilet, they end up hiring a plumber who doesn’t install it properly, which becomes an expensive mistake, Linn said.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 1, 2026
Nat, a former Navy SEAL, launched Minuteman Plumbing, Heating & Cooling with a master plumber he met through a Harvard mentor between graduation and starting his job at a consulting firm.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 17, 2026
Nigel Farage's party was running high in the polls at the start of the campaign, but Robert Kenyon, a plumber and Reform councillor, ending up in second place with 15,696 votes.
From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026
Apparently, he had been a plumber on the outside.
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
Nationwide, employers are struggling to fill around 160 types of jobs, ranging from careworkers to plumbers, according to the FEA.
From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026
The industry has successfully consolidated similar segments including heating and air-conditioning businesses, plumbers, roofers and pest-control companies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 29, 2026
He likes to think of QNX engineers as plumbers and electricians, responsible for the stuff we need and never see.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 2, 2026
Newman: The State Building and Construction Trades Council of California and a long roster of various trades locals representing such crafts as sheet metal and air conditioning, plumbers and electrical workers.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 1, 2026
Mami, who I’m sure will say, “Do you have a permiso?” steps aside like the toilet is overflowing and these are the plumbers coming to the rescue!
From "Before We Were Free" by Julia Alvarez
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.
