traveling salesman

noun

a male representative of a business firm who travels in an assigned territory soliciting orders for a company's products or services.

Origin of traveling salesman

An Americanism dating back to 1875–80

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

There she met Hugh Rodham, a traveling salesman eight years her senior, and after a five-year courtship, they married in 1942.
Hillary’s Amazing Mom | Eleanor Clift | November 1, 2011 | THE DAILY BEAST
I tried several positions and am now a traveling salesman for a large carpet house.
The Rover Boys on the Farm | Arthur M. Winfield (AKA Edward Stratemeyer)
To what class does the railroad fare paid by a traveling salesman belong?
Cyclopedia of Commerce, Accountancy, Business Administration, v. 1 | Various
George Roth, for all he was a traveling salesman, was a man of considerable determination.
The "Genius" | Theodore Dreiser
The traveling salesman is probably the most effective agency in securing the retailer's orders for coffee.
All About Coffee | William H. Ukers

Chamberlain, having once adopted the role of a garrulous traveling salesman, followed it up with zest.
The Stolen Singer | Martha Idell Fletcher Bellinger

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