buttons

American

[buht-nz] / ˈbʌt nz /

noun

(used with a singular verb)

a bellboy or page in a hotel.

buttons British

/ ˈbʌtənz /

noun

informal (functioning as singular) a page boy

"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

Etymology

Origin of buttons

First recorded in 1840–50; so called from the many buttons of his uniform

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

buttons

Neatly labeled drawers hold hand fans, plastic snakes, buttons, buckles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026

But to see him moving the levers and pushing buttons was fascinating.

From Salon ● Jul. 5, 2026

Many objects are not unique and quite a few are mass-produced, such as campaign posters and buttons and magazine covers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 17, 2026

However, Kathryn said she tried everything to stop "intrusive" adverts but updating her settings or clicking on mark as spam buttons did not prevent baby adverts popping up on her feeds weeks after a miscarriage.

From BBC ● Jun. 3, 2026

There was a row of tiny black buttons, which had taken an eternity to fasten back at the fashion emporium in Washington, running all the way up my ankle.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023