gripman

[ grip-muh n ]

/ ˈgrɪp mən /

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noun, plural grip·men.

a worker on a cable car who operates the grip, which, by grasping or releasing the moving cable, starts or stops the car.

Nearby words

grip tape, gripe, gripe water, gripey, griping, gripman, grippe, gripper, gripping, grippingly, gripple

Origin of gripman

An Americanism dating back to 1880–85; grip + -man

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

Examples from the Web for gripman

From the forward end you hear the gripman uttering shrill whoops and running over citizens.
Last Words|Stephen Crane
A cable-car, with clanging bell, was bearing down upon it with a speed which the gripman seemed powerless to check.
Prisons and Prayer: Or a Labor of Love|Elizabeth Ryder Wheaton
They heard the kindly tones of the gripman talking to his children.
A Yankee from the West|Opie Read
A little girl came out with a tin pail, the gripman's dinner.
A Yankee from the West|Opie Read

"You'd better hang on; the gripman is mad tonight," Mary explained.
Rose of Dutcher's Coolly|Hamlin Garland