John Henry

noun

plural

John Henries 

1. Informal.,  a person's signature.

2. U.S. Folklore.,  a legendary Black man of exceptional strength and stamina.

Henry, John

¹

1. A hero of American folktales and folk songs. The stories portray him as a black man, enormously strong, who worked on railroads or on steamboats and died from exhaustion after he outperformed a steam drill in a contest.

“John Henry”

²

1. An American folksong (see folk music) about the “steel-driving man” John Henry. It contains these lines:

   John Henry said to his captain,

   “A man ain't nothin' but a man,

   And before I'd let your steam drill beat me down,

   I'd die with the hammer in my hand, Lord, Lord!

   I'd die with the hammer in my hand.”

Word History and Origins

Origin of Henry, John¹

An Americanism dating back to 1910–15; from the proper name

Related Words

• impression 
• imprint 
• line 
• point 
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• score 
• signature 
• spot 
• stain 
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• streak 
• symbol