Dictionary.com
definitions

purveyor

[ per-vey-er ]
/ pərˈveɪ ər /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR purveyor ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who purveys, provides, or supplies: a purveyor of foods; a purveyor of lies.
Old English Law. an officer who provided or acquired provisions for the sovereign under the prerogative of purveyance.

RELATED CONTENT

Learn The History Of The New York Times Crossword PuzzleThere are plenty of crossword puzzles in publications across the country, but when we think of the pinnacle of puzzledom (Not officially a word, but, perhaps, it should be?), the purveyors of the most preeminent puzzles, we bow to The New York Times (NYT). But how did it all begin?
READ MORE

RELATED WORDS

waiter, attendant, administrator, curator, foreman, proctor, guardian, bailiff, director, manager, agent, magistrate, officer, seneschal, reeve, major-domo, chamberlain, manciple

Nearby words

puruloid, purus, purusha, purvey, purveyance, purveyor, purview, purée, purús, pus, pusan

Origin of purveyor

1250–1300; Middle English pourveour < Anglo-French; see purvey, -or2
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for purveyor

British Dictionary definitions for purveyor

purveyor

/ (pəˈveɪə) /

noun

(often plural) a person, organization, etc, that supplies food and provisions
a person who spreads, repeats, or sells (information, lies, etc)
a person or thing that habitually provides or supplies a particular thing or qualitya purveyor of humour
history an officer providing or exacting provisions, lodging, etc, for a sovereign
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 purveyor

purveyor

n.

c.1300, from Old French porveor (13c.), agent noun from porveoir (see purvey).

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper