yardman

¹ American  

[yahrd-muhn] / ˈyɑrd mən /

noun

Nautical.

plural

yardmen

1. a sailor assigned to the yards yard of a vessel.

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yardman ² American  

[yahrd-muhn] / ˈyɑrd mən /

noun

plural

yardmen

1. a person who works in a railroad yard, boatyard, lumberyard, or the like.

2. a person employed to care for the yard of a house, public building, etc., as by mowing the lawn and trimming shrubbery.

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Etymology

Origin of yardman¹

First recorded in 1885–90; yard ¹ + -man

Origin of yardman²

First recorded in 1815–25; yard ² + -man

Example Sentences

There is, furthermore, the besotted yardman Tomo who leads a bull into Michael Duff's kitchen for reasons that to him, at least, seem perfectly logical at the time.

From Time Magazine Archive

His father, who had brought the family West after fire destroyed their farm in Checotah, Okla., was a $40-a-week yardman.

From Time Magazine Archive

Hoover Secretary of Labor, onetime railroad yardman; of heart disease; in "Notre Nid," his Virginia home across the Potomac from Washington.

From Time Magazine Archive

She recalls that her father kept his wedding cake in the freezer for ten years, and that after her mother's funeral he presented it to the yardman.

From Time Magazine Archive

Never mind that Mister Johnny hired a fulltime yardman a few months ago, name of John Willis.

From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett