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jailer

or jail·or

[jey-ler]
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noun
  1. a person who is in charge of a jail or section of a jail.
  2. a person who forcibly confines another.
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Origin of jailer

1250–1300; Middle English gaioler, jaioler, jailer < Old French jaiolier. See jail, -er2
Related formsun·der·jail·er, noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for jailor

Historical Examples

  • The jailor decided that he could safely postpone his visit to Fandor's cell.

    A Nest of Spies

    Pierre Souvestre

  • The constable came back with the Clerk of the Court and the jailor.

    The Manxman

    Hall Caine

  • But Mombi was still my grandfather's jailor, and afterward my father's jailor.

  • The jailor, Swims, was a character, and merits a particular description.

    Daring and Suffering:

    William Pittenger

  • The jailor himself was a kind man, and rather of Union sentiments.

    Daring and Suffering:

    William Pittenger

British Dictionary definitions for jailor

jailer

jailor or gaoler

noun
  1. a person in charge of prisoners in a jail
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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 jailor

jailer

n.

also gaoler, late 14c., from Old North French gayolierre, Old French jaioleur, agent noun from jaole (see jail (n.)).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper