Squire vs Footman - What's the difference?
squire | footman |
A shield-bearer or armor-bearer who attended a knight.
A title of dignity next in degree below knight, and above gentleman. See esquire.
A male attendant on a great personage.
A devoted attendant or follower of a lady; a beau.
(UK, colloquial)
To attend as a squire
To attend as a beau, or gallant, for aid and protection
(obsolete) A ruler; a carpenter's square; a measure.
* 1598 , (Edmund Spenser), (The Faerie Queene)
* 1598 , (William Shakespeare), (w, Love's Labour's Lost) , V, 2, 474.
*
* 1628 , (William Shakespeare), (w, The Winter's Tale) , IV, 4, 348.
(label) A soldier who marches and fights on foot; a foot soldier.
A man in waiting; a male servant whose duties are to attend the door, the carriage, the table, etc.
*{{quote-book, year=1959, author=(Georgette Heyer), title=(The Unknown Ajax), chapter=1
, passage=And no use for anyone to tell Charles that this was because the Family was in mourning for Mr Granville Darracott […]: Charles might only have been second footman at Darracott Place for a couple of months when that disaster occurred, but no one could gammon him into thinking that my lord cared a spangle for his heir.}}
(label) A servant who runs in front of his master's carriage.
A metallic stand with four feet, for keeping anything warm before a fire.
A moth of the family ; -- so called from its livery-like colors.
As nouns the difference between squire and footman
is that squire is a shield-bearer or armor-bearer who attended a knight while footman is a soldier who marches and fights on foot; a foot soldier.As a verb squire
is to attend as a squire.squire
English
(wikipedia squire)Etymology 1
From (etyl) .Noun
(en noun)Verb
(squir)- (Chaucer)
- to squire a lady
- (Goldsmith)
Etymology 2
From (etyl) See square.Noun
(en noun)- But temperaunce, said he, with golden squire , / Betwixt them both can measure out a meane.
- do not you know my lady's foot by the squire .
- as for a workman not to know his axe, saw, squire , or any other toole, […].
- twelve foot and a half by the squire .
