pointsman

American  

[points-muhn] / ˈpɔɪnts mən /

noun

British.

pointsmen plural

1. a railway switchman.

2. a police officer who directs traffic, as at an intersection.

---

pointsman British  

/ -mən, ˈpɔɪntsˌmæn /

noun

1. US and Canadian equivalent: switchman.  a person who operates railway points

2. a policeman or traffic warden on point duty

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• pointsmen
  plural

Etymology

Origin of pointsman

First recorded in 1840–50; point + -s ³ + man

Example Sentences

Pompeo had told Sergei Lavrov, his Russian counterpart, in a separate meeting in Helsinki that Russia’s pointsman for the Ukraine, Vladislav Surkov, needed to engage constructively with U.S. envoy Kurt Volker.

From Washington Post • Jul. 20, 2018

The pointsman lay asleep near his sentry box, and the sun was blazing full on his face.

From The Chorus Girl and Other Stories by Garnett, Constance

I were pointsman on the South Eastern, with an only child—a girl As got switched to a houtside porter, though fit to 'ave married a       pearl.

From Successful Recitations by Miles, Alfred H. (Alfred Henry)

The number of carriages and passengers was not stated, but the pointsman at the Warrington junction being at his post, waiting for the train, was surprised to hear it coming at a very rapid rate. 

From Railway Adventures and Anecdotes extending over more than fifty years by Various

Such a withered old face was the face of the pointsman at No. 11 point!

From From Sea to Sea Letters of Travel by Kipling, Rudyard