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• butler
  butler

  noun

  the chief male servant of a household, usually in charge of serving food, the care of silverware, etc.
• Butler
  Butler

  noun

  Benjamin Franklin, 1818–93, U.S. politician and a Union general in the Civil War.

butler

¹ American  

[buht-ler] / ˈbʌt lər /

noun

• butlers
  plural

1. the chief male servant of a household, usually in charge of serving food, the care of silverware, etc.

2. a male servant having charge of the wines and liquors.

3. a tray or other receptacle used to serve drinks or food.

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verb (used with object)

1. to serve (drinks, hors d’oeuvres, etc.) by walking around among guests.

   Our waitstaff will butler cocktails on silver trays. The butlered appetizers are all gluten-free.

Butler ² American  

[buht-ler] / ˈbʌt lər /

noun

1. Benjamin Franklin, 1818–93, U.S. politician and a Union general in the Civil War.

2. Joseph, 1692–1752, English bishop, theologian, and author.

3. Nicholas Murray, 1862–1947, U.S. educator: president of Columbia University 1902–45; Nobel Peace Prize 1931.

4. Pierce, 1866–1939, U.S. jurist: associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court 1923–39.

5. Samuel, 1612–80, English poet.

6. Samuel, 1835–1902, English novelist, essayist, and satirist.

7. Smedley Darlington 1881–1940, U.S. Marine Corps general.

8. a city in W Pennsylvania.

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Butler ¹ British  

/ ˈbʌtlə /

noun

1. Joseph . 1692–1752, English bishop and theologian, author of Analogy of Religion (1736)

2. Josephine ( Elizabeth ). 1828–1906, British social reformer, noted esp for her campaigns against state regulation of prostitution

3. Reg , full name Reginald Cotterell Butler . 1913–81, British metal sculptor; his works include The Unknown Political Prisoner (1953)

4. R ( ichard ) A ( usten ), Baron Butler of Saffron Walden, known as Rab Butler . 1902–82, British Conservative politician: Chancellor of the Exchequer (1951–55); Home Secretary (1957–62); Foreign Secretary (1963–64)

5. Samuel . 1612–80, English poet and satirist; author of Hudibras (1663–78)

6. Samuel . 1835–1902, British novelist, noted for his satirical work Erewhon (1872) and his autobiographical novel The Way of All Flesh (1903)

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butler ² British  

/ ˈbʌtlə /

noun

1. the male servant of a household in charge of the wines, table, etc: usually the head servant

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• butlership
  noun
• underbutler
  noun
• butlerlike
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• butlers
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of butler

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English buteler, from Anglo-French butuiller, Old French bouteillier, from Medieval Latin butticulārius, derivative of butticula ; see bottle ¹, -er ², -ier ²

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

butler Butler butlers

Hopkins’ voice, still deeply familiar as some of film’s most famous characters, including the serial killer Hannibal Lecter and the English butler, James Stevens, from “Remains of the Day,” now has a weathered rasp.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2026

Ismael Camenforte Lopez, described in Germany as his manager's "ball butler", is known for feeding balls into training matches, allowing sessions to be played at a high tempo.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

Roth’s assistant, named Alfred after the butler from “Batman,” is dry, direct and has strong opinions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026

He tells me the apartment comes with a butler.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 18, 2026

“I guess,” Kenny finally said slowly, “the butler, chauffeur and personal chef couldn’t make this meeting?”

From "Lawn Boy Returns" by Gary Paulsen

Health Minister Robbie Butler has first-hand experience of providing foster care and said he would like to encourage people to come forward to foster.

From BBC ● Nov. 3, 2026

“There was no asking what his name was, no ID, nothing,” Butler said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026

Isaac Butler makes the case that the film holds a mirror up to its audience by focusing on the nature of performance and artifice.

From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2026

He now sits in the Butler County Jail on an ICE hold.

From Salon ● Oct. 29, 2026

One day in early April, during recess, Mrs. Butler ushered us outside on the playground and measured us for the Maypole dance.

From "March Forward, Girl" by Melba Pattillo Beals

The investor story is not robot butlers or science-fiction spectacle — it is production costs.

From MarketWatch ● May 27, 2026

Throughout the performance, white mask-clad butlers guide audiences to their destinations.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 2, 2026

A new robot shop has opened in Beijing selling everything from mechanical butlers to human-like replicas of Albert Einstein.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2025

They have music playing and very snazzily dressed butlers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2025

Incidentally, now that I come to think further about it, it is not quite true to say there was no dispute as to who were the great butlers.

From "The Remains of the Day" by Kazuo Ishiguro

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