courtier

[kawr-tee-er, kohr-]

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.

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

Related formsun·der·cour·ti·er, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words for courtier

beau, attendant, flatterer, wooer

Examples from the Web for courtier

Contemporary Examples of 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

Historical Examples of courtier

But of that absence the courtier's enemies well availed themselves.
Calderon The Courtier
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
The quick step of Fonseca interrupted the courtier's reverie.
Calderon The Courtier
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
There is many a courtier will swear to King Henry to bring him in dead or alive.
Maid Marian
Thomas Love Peacock
But no use moralizing—he was always too much of a courtier for me.
Tales And Novels, Volume 9 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth
Why that man has conversation for the prince and the peasant—the courtier and the anchorite.
Tales And Novels, Volume 9 (of 10)
Maria Edgeworth

British Dictionary definitions for courtier

courtier

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

Word Origin and History for courtier

early 13c., from Anglo-French *corteour, from Old French cortoiier "to be at court, live at court" (see court (n.)).