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maître d'hôtel

[ mey-ter doh-tel, mey-truh; French me-truhdoh-tel ]
/ ˌmeɪ tər doʊˈtɛl, ˌmeɪ trə; French ˌmɛ trədoʊˈtɛl /
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See synonyms for: maître d'hôtel / maîtres d'hôtel on Thesaurus.com

noun, plural maî·tres d'hô·tel [mey-terz doh-tel, mey-truhz; French me-truhdoh-tel]. /ˌmeɪ tərz doʊˈtɛl, ˌmeɪ trəz; French ˌmɛ trədoʊˈtɛl/.
a headwaiter.
a steward or butler.
the owner or manager of a hotel.
Cooking. a sauce of melted butter, minced parsley, and lemon juice or vinegar.
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Also called maître d' (for defs. 1-3) .

Origin of maître d'hôtel

First recorded in 1530–40; from French: “master of (the) house”
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use maître d'hôtel in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for maître d'hôtel

maître d'hôtel
/ (ˌmɛtrə dəʊˈtɛl, French mɛtrə dotɛl) /

noun plural maîtres d'hôtel
a head waiter or steward
the manager or owner of a hotel

Word Origin for maître d'hôtel

C16: from French: master of (the) hotel
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
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