tradesman

American  

[traydz-muhn] / ˈtreɪdz mən /

noun

• tradesmen
  plural

1. a person engaged in trade.

2. a worker skilled in a particular craft; artisan; craftsman.

3. Chiefly British. a shopkeeper.

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tradesman British  

/ ˈtreɪdzmən /

noun

1. a man engaged in trade, esp a retail dealer

2. a skilled worker

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Gender

See -man.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• tradeswoman
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• tradesmen
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of tradesman

First recorded in 1590–1600; trade + 's ¹ + -man

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

tradesman tradesmen

For enterprising men, money from war, industry or trade was a passport through social frontiers—the tradesman, merchant or lucky naval captain could become a landed gentleman, as happens in Austen’s novels.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 21, 2025

Fifteen years later, the tradesman stood outside Crane’s old spray booth, sanding a $25,000 rosewood bench.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2025

The first—the shark—comes from Steven Spielberg’s 1975 blockbuster Jaws, in which a sheriff, a scientist, and a tradesman roll up their sleeves and put themselves in harm’s way to defeat a ferocious great white.

From Slate ● Oct. 29, 2024

A separate tradesman estimated the value of the work completed by Mr McMaster amounted to only £16,000.

From BBC ● Feb. 7, 2024

Maddie, you will recall, is the granddaughter of an immigrant tradesman.

From "Code Name Verity" by Elizabeth Wein

On a recent evening in a local pub, two builders asked other patrons for recommendations for tradesmen and were told they had to wait several weeks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 14, 2026

“This was an industry of gatekeepers,” he said, adding that master tradesmen ultimately viewed their apprentices — working in the same 10- to 15-mile radius as them — as competition.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 16, 2025

Here’s how the day usually goes: At 3 p.m. sharp, about 3,500 members of Zurich’s ancient guilds — associations of artisans or tradesmen that date to the Middle Ages — embark on a parade.

From New York Times ● Apr. 16, 2024

It was a huge adjustment going home but I had a lot of support from the football community and my family and some of my friends are tradesmen so they made adaptations to my home.

From BBC ● Apr. 7, 2024

The mob included craftsmen and laborers, salesmen and tradesmen, mothers and schoolchildren.

From "A Few Red Drops: The Chicago Race Riot of 1919" by Claire Hartfield

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