courtier

[ kawr-tee-er, kohr- ]

/ ˈkɔr ti ər, ˈkoʊr- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR courtier ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who is often in attendance at the court of a king or other royal personage.

a person who seeks favor by flattery, charm, etc.

Content related to courtier

Words related to courtier

beau, attendant, flatterer, wooer

Words nearby courtier

courtesy car, courtesy card, courtesy light, courtesy title, courthouse, courtier, courting mirror, courtly, courtly love, courtrai, courtroom

Origin of courtier

1250–1300; Middle English courteour < Anglo-French courte(i)our, equivalent to Old French cortoy(er) to attend at court (derivative of court court) + Anglo-French -our < Latin -ōr- -or²; suffix later conformed to -ier¹

OTHER WORDS FROM courtier

un·der·cour·ti·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for courtier

But the essence of Disraeli's genius as a courtier was his ability to make it all about her.
Bachelor Brad Womack's Hidden Brilliance|Nicole LaPorte|February 20, 2011|DAILY BEAST
I, who had been her playmate, would not become her courtier.
Richard Carvel, Complete|Winston Churchill
Domitian had expected a denial from the courtier, not a confirmation of the facts.
Quintus Claudius, Volume 2 of 2|Ernst Eckstein
The courtier lord had one son, of whom he made a soldier, but who never rose to a higher rank than that of Captain.
The Kellys and the O'Kellys|Anthony Trollope

Abul Fazl had another project in his brain; it combined the audacity of genius with the mendacity of a courtier.
The Great Events by Famous Historians, Volume 9|Various
A courtier is attached to the King; a soldier to the army; there is humiliation in neither of these.
The Suitors of Yvonne|Raphael Sabatini

British Dictionary definitions for courtier

courtier

/ (ˈkɔːtɪə) /

noun

an attendant at a court

a person who seeks favour in an ingratiating manner

Word Origin for courtier

C13: from Anglo-French courteour (unattested), from Old French corteier to attend at court

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