chauffeur

American  

[shoh-fer, shoh-fur] / ˈʃoʊ fər, ʃoʊˈfɜr /

noun

• chauffeurs
  plural

1. a person employed to drive a private automobile or limousine for the owner.

2. a person employed to drive a car or limousine that transports paying passengers.

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verb (used with object)

• chauffeurs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• chauffeured,
  past participle,  past
• chauffeuring
  present participle

1. to drive (a vehicle) as a chauffeur.

2. to transport by car.

   Saturday mornings I have to chauffeur the kids to their music lessons.

verb (used without object)

• chauffeurs,
  present (3rd person singular)
• chauffeured,
  past participle,  past
• chauffeuring
  present participle

1. to work as a chauffeur.

   He chauffeured for a time right after the war.

chauffeur British  

/ ˈʃəʊfə, ʃəʊˈfɜːz, ʃəʊˈfɜː /

noun

1. a person employed to drive a car

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verb

1. to act as driver for (a person)

   he chauffeured me to the stadium

   he chauffeurs for the Duke

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• chauffeuse
  noun
• unchauffeured
  adjective
• well-chauffeured
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• chauffeurs
  plural

Participles

• chauffeuring
  present
• chauffeured
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• chauffeur
  simple
• chauffeurs
  simple
• have chauffeured
  perfect
• has chauffeured
  perfect
• am chauffeuring
  progressive
• are chauffeuring
  progressive
• is chauffeuring
  progressive
• have been chauffeuring
  perfect progressive
• has been chauffeuring
  perfect progressive

Past

• chauffeured
  simple
• had chauffeured
  perfect
• was chauffeuring
  progressive
• were chauffeuring
  progressive
• had been chauffeuring
  perfect progressive

Future

• will chauffeur
  simple
• will have chauffeured
  perfect
• will be chauffeuring
  progressive
• will have been chauffeuring
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of chauffeur

1895–1900; < French, equivalent to chauff(er ) to heat ( see chafe) + -eur -eur

Explanation

Do you pay someone to drive you around? Then you have a private chauffeur. Chauffeur literally means "operator of a steam engine" in French, but they used it as a nickname for the first motorists who drove steam engine cars. Today chauffeurs are just the guys you pay to drive you around, like the chauffeur of a limo. Chauffeur can also be used as a verb: once you get your driver's license, your parents will be happy to not have to chauffeur you back and forth to school.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

chauffeur chauffeurs chauffeured chauffeuring

Mulholland grabbed his assistant and told his chauffeur to head there.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026

The man needs a chauffeur more than group therapy.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 4, 2026

His father worked as a chauffeur and mechanic for the family that lived in the large house in front of their home, where his mother sometimes cooked.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026

Done up in a luscious dark-red paint scheme, it has a removable roof over the front seats, putting your chauffeur out in the elements while you sit in back, away from prying eyes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026

And why was the chauffeur so grumpy today?

From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

The business, which also offered customers access to jets, homes and chauffeurs, gained a loyal following among local rappers and social media influencers.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 24, 2026

He chauffeurs them around in a rental minivan.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 11, 2026

John Lennon, who in life was such a terrible driver that he hired chauffeurs for the safety of those around him, is in command of the main spaceship.

From Salon ● Dec. 4, 2023

Everything from food to chauffeurs is one-fourth the price of Manhattan.

From New York Times ● Nov. 14, 2021

We recently put in a second small covered patio with a bar so that while my guests are enjoying a meal, their chauffeurs will have a pleasant place to bide their time.

From "The Poisonwood Bible" by Barbara Kingsolver

A videographer captured Moore throwing $20 bills in the air as he walked through a flower arch and then leaving for prom in a chauffeured Bentley.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

Many new branded schemes feature private members' clubs, wellness facilities and exclusive services - from chauffeured cars and yacht access, to private jet partnerships.

From BBC ● Jan. 11, 2026

Besides security services at home and during personal travel, that can include elaborate home-alarm systems, bodyguards or company cars chauffeured by specially trained drivers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 6, 2026

Maybe next Cannes, he’ll be the one getting fêted and chauffeured.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 18, 2025

Santa is chauffeured by a reindeer in a cap.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides

TBR Global Chauffeuring, a luxury chauffeuring company that Lyft acquired last year, saw its strongest month on record in June.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

To Los Angeles City Council members searching desperately for cuts amid a budget crisis, the Fire Department’s emergency incident technicians are “drivers” whose main role is chauffeuring battalion chiefs to emergencies.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 13, 2025

The technology went from a perpetual “six months away” to chauffeuring masses of riders this year as both companies gathered experience in pilot cities and used that knowledge to expand to others.

From Slate ● Aug. 4, 2023

Among a circle of nondriving peers, Schuessler’s kids love to be behind the wheel, so they often find themselves chauffeuring carloads of older friends.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 21, 2023

“More money in chauffeuring and dog-sitting,” she mumbled.

From "Millionaires for the Month" by Stacey McAnulty