vaunt-courier

American

[vawnt-kur-ee-er, -koor-, vahnt-] / ˈvɔntˌkɜr i ər, -ˌkʊər-, ˈvɑnt- /

noun

Archaic.

a person who goes in advance, as a herald.

vaunt-courier British

noun

archaic a person or thing that goes in advance; forerunner; herald

"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 vaunt-courier

First recorded in 1550–60, vaunt-courier is from the French word avant-courrier forerunner, herald. See avaunt, courier

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.

Still vaunt-courier to the King, As when he burst the bonds of Austria!

From Project Gutenberg

No, by the Sun I swear,II 1 Vaunt-courier of the host of heaven.

From Project Gutenberg

"A mere vaunt-courier to announce the coming of his master."

From Project Gutenberg

Too quickly has vanished the brief season when the sky is clement, when a little food suffices, and the chances of earning that little are more numerous than at other times; this wind that gives utterance to its familiar warning is the vaunt-courier of cold and hunger and solicitude that knows not sleep.

From Project Gutenberg

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