valet

American  

[va-ley, val-it, val-ey] / væˈleɪ, ˈvæl ɪt, ˈvæl eɪ /

noun

valets plural

1. a male servant who attends to the personal needs of his male employer, as by taking care of clothing or the like; manservant.

2. a man who is employed for cleaning and pressing, laundering, and similar services for patrons of a hotel, passengers on a ship, etc.

3. an attendant who parks cars for patrons at a hotel, restaurant, etc.

4. a stand or rack for holding coats, hats, etc.

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verb (used with or without object)

valets, present (3rd person singular) valeted, past participle, past valeting present participle

1. to serve as a valet.

valet British  

/ ˈvæleɪ, ˈvælɪt /

noun

1. French name: valet de chambre.  a manservant who acts as personal attendant to his employer, looking after his clothing, serving his meals, etc

2. a manservant who attends to the requirements of patrons in a hotel, passengers on board ship, etc; steward

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verb

1. to act as a valet for (a person)

2. (tr) to clean the bodywork and interior of (a car) as a professional service

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unvaleted
  adjective
• valetless
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• valets
  plural

Participles

• valeting
  present
• valeted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• valet
  simple
• valets
  simple
• have valeted
  perfect
• has valeted
  perfect
• am valeting
  progressive
• are valeting
  progressive
• is valeting
  progressive
• have been valeting
  perfect progressive
• has been valeting
  perfect progressive

Past

• valeted
  simple
• had valeted
  perfect
• was valeting
  progressive
• were valeting
  progressive
• had been valeting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will valet
  simple
• will have valeted
  perfect
• will be valeting
  progressive
• will have been valeting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of valet

1560–70; < French; Middle French va ( s ) let squire, equivalent to vas- (< Medieval Latin vassus servant) + -let -let; see vassal

Explanation

A valet is like a butler: a servant who attends to his employer's needs. A valet is a personal attendant to his employer, who might run errands, clean, cook, drive, or perform other tasks as needed. A valet works very closely with his employer and might even live on the premises. If you go to a fancy restaurant or hotel, you might have a valet park your car — but don't expect him to do your laundry!

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

valet valets valeted valeting

And a $10 charge for trash hauling and $15 for valet trash service, on top of several other fees.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 2, 2026

On the Fine and Country website, the property is listed as having seven en-suite bedrooms, a valet car garage and a large drawing room.

From BBC ● May 30, 2026

Marchand, who danced down the aisle to Kendrick Lamar at his own wedding, serves as a kind of valet turned therapist turned fixer.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 19, 2026

She takes a seat in the shade, waiting for the valet to bring her car.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 27, 2026

I asked to sit up atop the carriage with 24-06, the valet.

From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume I: The Pox Party" by M.T. Anderson

The valets in the lobby summon golf carts with a flick of the wrist, graciously driving me back and forth from the parking lot.

From Slate ● Jun. 2, 2026

Instead, he plowed money into services such as ski valets, who wear yellow jackets and help guests carry their gear.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 1, 2026

"From valets to duchesses, from three-piece suits to the Roaring Twenties, there is something for every taste," it boasts on its website.

From Barron's ● Feb. 12, 2026

Two young valets wearing smart suits and tweed caps ran over.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 11, 2025

The valets helped each of the children down to the grass, which was soft and wet under their feet.

From "The Inquisitor's Tale" by Adam Gidwitz

Besides having a lovely meal, I valeted my car with ease, which allowed me to stroll down the block for a post-dinner constitutional without having to remember which public garage I parked in.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 11, 2023

There was plenty of street parking on Thursday night outside of Il Bacco Italian restaurant in Little Neck, Queens, but we valeted the car anyway.

From Slate ● Jan. 13, 2023

It applies to services too, like having your nails done or getting your car valeted.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2021

Garage parking in Manhattan is almost universally valeted, which, on the one hand, provides some measure of security — but also evokes the valet joyride scene from Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.

From The Verge ● Jul. 26, 2015

Prichard, the ex-butler who valeted all the young gentlemen in the house where Philip had taken chambers, brought him his breakfast.

From The Red Cross Girl by Davis, Richard Harding

They also outlined plans for investment in more EV charging points, as well as the offer in the forecourts around food-to-go and valeting services.

From BBC ● Jan. 30, 2024

Instead, Saleh recalled shoveling snow and valeting cars for the actual guests.

From Fox News ● Dec. 2, 2021

Liu and Awkwafina effortlessly riff off each other about the struggles of being the children of Asian and immigrant parents with high expectations, and often defend the valiant, underappreciated profession of valeting.

From Salon ● Sep. 3, 2021

Maybe that’s what angels do, valeting their wings at the end of a hard day’s flight.

From The New Yorker ● Aug. 31, 2018

He had about as much gift of the gab as a hippopotamus, and was not a great hand at valeting, but I knew I could count on his loyalty.

From The Thirty-Nine Steps by Buchan, John

Related Words

• attendant
• servant