Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

palmer1

[pah-mer, pahl-]
See more synonyms on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a pilgrim, especially of the Middle Ages, who had returned from the Holy Land bearing a palm branch as a token.
  2. any religious pilgrim.
  3. palmerworm.
verb (used without object)
  1. Scot. and North England. to wander; go idly from place to place.

Origin of palmer1

1250–1300; Middle English palmer(e) < Anglo-French palmer, Old French palmier < Medieval Latin palmārius, special use of Latin palmārius palmary

palmer2

[pah-mer]
noun
  1. a person who palms a card, die, or other object, as in cheating at a game or performing a magic trick.

Origin of palmer2

First recorded in 1665–75; palm1 + -er1

Palmer

[pah-mer or for 6, pahl-]
noun
  1. Alice Elvira,1855–1902, U.S. educator.
  2. Arnold,born 1929, U.S. golfer.
  3. Daniel David,1845–1913, Canadian originator of chiropractic medicine.
  4. George Herbert,1842–1933, U.S. educator, philosopher, and author.
  5. James AlvinJim, born 1945, U.S. baseball player.
  6. a town in S Massachusetts.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for palmer

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • Her people are wealthy, but she'll have nothing but what Palmer makes.

    K

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • Christine and Palmer Howe came in to see her, and to inspect the balcony, now finished.

    K

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • "I take that back," Palmer spoke indolently from the corridor.

    K

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • Christine and Palmer had not returned from their wedding journey.

    K

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

  • "The less said about Palmer's habits the better," flashed Christine.

    K

    Mary Roberts Rinehart

British Dictionary definitions for palmer

palmer

noun
  1. (in Medieval Europe) a pilgrim bearing a palm branch as a sign of his visit to the Holy Land
  2. (in Medieval Europe) an itinerant monk
  3. (in Medieval Europe) any pilgrim
  4. any of various artificial angling flies characterized by hackles around the length of the body

Word Origin

C13: from Old French palmier, from Medieval Latin palmārius, from Latin palma palm

Palmer

noun
  1. Arnold. born 1929, US professional golfer: winner of seven major championships, including four in the US Masters (1958, 1960, 1962, 1964) and two in the British Open (1961,1962)
  2. Samuel. 1805–81, English painter of visionary landscapes, influenced by William Blake
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for palmer

n.

"pilgrim who has returned from the Holy Land," late 12c. (as a surname), from Anglo-French palmer (Old French palmier), from Medieval Latin palmarius, from Latin palma "palm tree" (see palm (n.2)). So called because they wore palm branches in commemoration of the journey.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper