yeoman

American  

[yoh-muhn] / ˈyoʊ mən /

noun

plural

yeomen

1. a petty officer in a navy, having chiefly clerical duties in the U.S. Navy.

2. British. a farmer who cultivates his own land.

3. History/Historical. one of a class of lesser freeholders, below the gentry, who cultivated their own land, early admitted in England to political rights.

4. Archaic.

   1. a servant, attendant, or subordinate official in a royal or other great household.

   2. a subordinate or assistant, as of a sheriff or other official or in a craft or trade.

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adjective

1. of, pertaining to, composed of, or characteristic of yeomen.

   the yeoman class.

2. performed or rendered in a loyal, valiant, useful, or workmanlike manner, especially in situations that involve a great deal of effort or labor.

   He did a yeoman job on the problem.

yeoman British  

/ ˈjəʊmən /

noun

1. history

   1. a member of a class of small freeholders of common birth who cultivated their own land

   2. an assistant or other subordinate to an official, such as a sheriff, or to a craftsman or trader

   3. an attendant or lesser official in a royal or noble household

2. (in Britain) another name for yeoman of the guard

3. (modifier) characteristic of or relating to a yeoman

4. a petty officer or noncommissioned officer in the Royal Navy or Marines in charge of signals

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Etymology

Origin of yeoman

1300–50; Middle English yeman, yoman, probably reduced forms of yengman, yongman, yungman, with similar sense; young, man

Example Sentences

Coast Guard, serving as a yeoman first class from 1955 to 1959 before coming to the Pacific Northwest to pursue his education.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 1, 2023

And that was at a time when the main military bullwork of the country was the militia, these part-time, yeoman farmers.

From Slate • May 3, 2023

A decade later, after what colleagues and constituents called the senator’s yeoman service as an advocate on health and environmental issues, a hidden side of Mr. Durenberger began to surface.

From New York Times • Jan. 31, 2023

That’s how Reed described the yeoman worker who phoned him to say that, indeed, trainer D. Wayne Lukas and owners had decided to scratch Ethereal Road, right around the 9 a.m. deadline.

From Washington Post • May 7, 2022

Clarkston was originally settled by yeoman farmers and railroad workers in the years after the Civil War.

From "Outcasts United: An American Town, a Refugee Team, and One Woman's Quest to Make a Difference" by Warren St. John