sommelier

American  

[suhm-uhl-yey, saw-muh-lyey] / ˌsʌm əlˈyeɪ, sɔ məˈlyeɪ /

noun

PLURAL

sommeliers

1. a waiter, as in a club or restaurant, who is in charge of wines.

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sommelier British  

/ ˈsʌməlˌjeɪ /

noun

1. a wine steward in a restaurant or hotel

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Etymology

Origin of sommelier

1920–25; < French, Middle French, dissimilated form of *sommerier, derivative of sommier one charged with arranging transportation, equivalent to somme burden (< Late Latin sagma horse load < Greek ságma covering, pack saddle) + -ier -ier ²

Example Sentences

There’s the “cellar rat” turned sommelier who worked at Tampa’s Bern’s for over three decades.

From Los Angeles Times

The Mather has bourbon clubs and wine clubs with mixologists and sommeliers on staff.

From Barron's

The Mather has bourbon clubs and wine clubs with mixologists and sommeliers on staff.

From Barron's

H2O is the stuff of life, but for several decades, water producers and sommeliers have been working to make it something more: the stuff of taste.

From The Wall Street Journal

The snobbish sommelier is a relic from the past—a figure from a less-enlightened time in wine.

From The Wall Street Journal