bootblack

[ boot-blak ]

/ ˈbutˌblæk /

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noun

a person who shines shoes and boots for a living.

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Origin of bootblack

An Americanism dating back to 1810–20; boot¹ + black

Words nearby bootblack

boosterism, booster seat, boost phase, boost-start, boot, bootblack, boot boy, boot camp, boot-cut, booted, bootee

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use bootblack in a sentence

The mountain lad, though but half comprehending the bootblack's meaning, was aware that he was being made game of.
Ralph Granger's Fortunes|William Perry Brown
From the Cittadella School there was a bootblack whom my father knew, and the prefect gave him a diploma.
Cuore (Heart)|Edmondo De Amicis
The chair of the bootblack had been splintered into kindling wood.
The Sheriff's Son|William MacLeod Raine
At the junction of Wall and New Streets he came suddenly upon a large-sized bootblack, whose face looked familiar.
Helping Himself|Horatio Alger

Opposite the tent of the bootblack he halted and started back again, where the path lay clear in the moonlight.
On Guard|Upton Sinclair

British Dictionary definitions for bootblack

bootblack

/ (ˈbuːtˌblæk) /

noun

mainly US another word for shoeblack

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