doorman

American  

[dawr-man, -muhn, dohr-] / ˈdɔrˌmæn, -mən, ˈdoʊr- /

noun

doormen plural

1. the door attendant of an apartment house, nightclub, etc., who acts as doorkeeper and may perform minor services for entering and departing residents or guests.

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doorman British  

/ ˈdɔːˌmæn, -mən /

noun

1. a man employed to attend the doors of certain buildings

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Etymology

Origin of doorman

First recorded in 1855–60; door + man

Explanation

A doorman's job involves being stationed near a door, to monitor the entrance and hold the door for people as they come and go. Fancy hotels and apartment buildings usually have a doorman. The doorman at the hotel where you're staying in New York might call a cab for you, or take your suitcase and find a bellhop to carry it to your room. The presence of a doorman can make a building feel more elegant, and also safer — one of a doorman's jobs is keeping an eye on things and providing security. In the UK, a doorman is also called a porter.

Example Sentences

“Everything is going up,” said Ariel Buenaventura, a doorman at a 16-story red-brick building on Manhattan’s Upper East Side.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

Fishman, who owns a number of doorman buildings in Manhattan and Brooklyn, said he had third-party security guards and superintendents ready to step in.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 17, 2026

James Babson, a longtime doorman at the Hotel Cafe, said its staff and attendees alike have always been reverent toward performers.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 30, 2025

“Later, he covered her rent and furnished her apartment in a doorman building in the West Village.”

From Slate • Nov. 19, 2025

"You heard that doorman say 'purple waves'; it must mean something. And that ghastly secretary was wearing a dress with purple waves last night, not to mention her crutch."

From "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin

Related Words

• concierge