housekeeper
Americannoun
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housekeepers
plural
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a person, often hired, who does or directs the domestic work and planning necessary for a home, as cleaning or buying food.
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an employee of a hotel, hospital, etc., who supervises the cleaning staff.
noun
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a person, esp a woman, employed to run a household
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a person who is not an efficient and thrifty domestic manager
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a person who is an efficient and thrifty domestic manager
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of housekeeper
First recorded in 1375–1425, housekeeper is from the late Middle English word houskeper. See house, keeper
Explanation
A housekeeper is someone whose job involves cleaning other people's houses. In some cases, a housekeeper also cooks meals for her employers. It was once common in many countries for wealthy families to employ a live-in housekeeper, who may have been called a maid or a servant. Today it's less typical, although some families hire workers to clean occasionally — these people might come once a week and are usually called <>housecleaners rather than housekeepers. The word uses the sense of keep that means "maintain or preserve order."
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He said she had the help of a full-time nanny who doubled as a personal secretary, and a housekeeper who worked 15 hours a week.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 31, 2026
He now owes nearly $13 million to the housekeeper.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
She has a housekeeper, but how does she manage to keep everything dust free?
From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026
Simmons’ connection to the property received new attention earlier this month when broadcast journalist Diane Sawyer visited the home to spend time with the fitness guru’s brother, Lenny Simmons, and his housekeeper, Teresa Reveles.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 3, 2026
Whether Miss Love was now Grandpa’s wife or still just his housekeeper, she wouldn’t put her own money into plumbing if she was still thinking about leaving Cold Sassy.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
Tips make up a significant portion of the income for millions of servers, housekeepers, taxi drivers, and hairstylists across the United States.
From Barron's ● Aug. 29, 2026
If Musk fails, he only earns his $54,080 salary, or about half of what unionized hotel housekeepers make in Manhattan.
From Barron's ● Jun. 17, 2026
The deal hikes hourly wages for most hotel workers by about 50% over eight years, with housekeepers set to earn six figures by 2032.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 27, 2026
In her 35 year-long career, Ontiveros played the role of maids and housekeepers over 150 times.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2026
Even the affluent young are increasingly unlikely to spend their summers learning how the “other half” lives, as lifeguards, waitresses, or housekeepers at resort hotels.
From "Nickel and Dimed: On (Not) Getting By in America" by Barbara Ehrenreich
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
