gentleman-farmer

American  

[jen-tl-muhn-fahr-mer] / ˈdʒɛn tl mənˈfɑr mər /

noun

gentlemen-farmers plural

1. a man whose wealth or income from other sources permits him to farm for pleasure rather than for basic income.

2. a man whose income from his farm has freed him from the necessity of physical labor.

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gentleman-farmer British  

noun

1. a person who engages in farming but does not depend on it for his living

2. a person who owns farmland but does not farm it personally

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Other Word Forms

Inflected Forms

noun

• gentlemen-farmers
  plural

Etymology

Origin of gentleman-farmer

First recorded in 1740–50

Example Sentences

The most talked about young Tory, gentleman-farmer David Eccles, 47, after waiting nervously for a week while 32 other jobs were filled, was made Minister of Works.

From Time Magazine Archive

During his time in office, Arbenz emerged as the owner of a $3,000,000 cotton plantation; his Interior Minister turned into a gentleman-farmer with two coffee fincas; another pal acquired two mansions.

From Time Magazine Archive

And to F.D.R., the tall, dour gentleman-farmer who peered frostily at the world through pince-nez was sometimes "Henry the Morgue," but also "one of two of a kind"�the other being Roosevelt himself.

From Time Magazine Archive

One-time Governor McCray, now out of the penitentiary, wishing to re-establish a reputation as a gentleman-farmer and honest man, has announced his willingness to tell everything.

From Time Magazine Archive

As a "gentleman-farmer," he might easily have repaired from his study all the losses which his trained subordinates of the garden and the field incurred from the lack of his constant superintendence.

From The Atlantic Monthly, Volume 13, No. 75, January, 1864 by Various