town crier

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR town crier ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

(formerly) a person employed by a town to make public announcements or proclamations, usually by shouting in the streets.

Nearby words

towmond, town, town and gown, town car, town clerk, town crier, town gas, town hall, town house, town manager, town meeting

Origin of town crier

First recorded in 1595–1605

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for town crier

He wants no boisterous notes of artificial passion: he would as lief the town-crier spoke his lines.
The Young Priest's Keepsake|Michael Phelan
But it was only a town-crier beating his drum to call the people together.
The Honor of the Name|Emile Gaboriau
I imagine this was no case of the town-crier being sent out.
Joyce of the North Woods|Harriet T. Comstock
I can't my voice raise higher and still higher, As if I were a herald or town-crier. '
The Book of Humorous Verse|Various

It's my opinion he'll tell the town-crier to-night and have it in all the prints of the realm within the week.
Nancy Stair|Elinor Macartney Lane

British Dictionary definitions for town crier

town crier

noun

(formerly) a person employed by a town to make public announcements in the streets

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