milliner

American  

[mil-uh-ner] / ˈmɪl ə nər /

noun

1. a person who designs, makes, or sells hats for women.

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milliner British  

/ ˈmɪlɪnə /

noun

1. a person who makes or sells women's hats

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Etymology

Origin of milliner

First recorded in 1520–30; variant of obsolete Milaner “native of Milan, dealer in goods from Milan” ( Milan was formerly accented on the first syllable); see -er ¹

Explanation

A milliner is someone who designs or makes hats, especially women’s hats. Milliners usually sell hats too. The noun milliner is a somewhat outdated word for a hat maker — it refers to someone whose business is to design, make, decorate, or sell hats. You might go to a milliner before your trip to South America, to buy a large-brimmed sun hat. The earliest meaning of the word milliner, from the fifteenth century, was "vendor of fancy wares, especially those made in Milan," though by the eighteenth century it meant "one who sells women's hats."

Example Sentences

His father cut men’s suits in Manhattan’s garment district; his mother was a milliner.

From New York Times • Jan. 21, 2024

Viv Jenner, a milliner, wore a hat made for the wearer to look through the flowered brim at the center, made from feathers.

From Seattle Times • Jun. 23, 2023

His wife, Nadia El-Nakla, was dressed in a full-length kilt made from the same tartan, by Scottish designer Siobhan MacKenzie, and a hat by Glasgow milliner William Chambers.

From BBC • May 6, 2023

Her father ran a pair of fur stores, and her mother was a milliner, a maker of women’s hats.

From Washington Post • Apr. 17, 2023

There’s a milliner in Athens who trained with Love in Baltimore and she says Love’s daddy fought on the Union side in the War.

From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns