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boilermaker

American  
[boi-ler-mey-ker] / ˈbɔɪ lərˌmeɪ kər /

noun

  1. a person employed to make and repair boilers or other heavy metal items.

  2. whiskey with beer as a chaser.


boilermaker British  
/ ˈbɔɪləˌmeɪkə /

noun

  1. a person who works with metal in heavy industry; plater or welder

  2. slang a beer drink consisting of half of draught mild and half of bottled brown ale

  3. slang a drink of whisky followed by a beer chaser

"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

Etymology

Origin of boilermaker

First recorded in 1860–65; boiler + maker

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

Additional money is being provided by Hull-based boilermaker Ideal Heating.

From BBC Nov. 18, 2025

His father was a boilermaker on the Lake Erie Railroad and Lujack was often kidded that he should have gone to Purdue, not Notre Dame.

From Los Angeles Times Jul. 30, 2023

After boilermaker Michael Delacour led a grassroots group to plant vegetation, turning the eyesore into a community magnet, UC Berkeley decided to fence it off on May 15, 1969.

From Seattle Times Aug. 25, 2022

His father, a boilermaker, was strict and demanding.

From New York Times Jun. 22, 2021

Are you going to send to a boiler shop and get a boilermaker to come out and fix them and pay him from forty to sixty cents an hour for doing it?

From Rough and Tumble Engineering by Maggard, James H.

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