varlet

varlet
   A variant of the word ‘valet’, a gentleman’s servant. By the beginning of the seventeenth century it had also acquired the special meaning of bailiff, or sergeant-at-mace.
   In Ben Jonson’s Every Man in his Humour, Musco disguises himself as a varlet. ‘A kind of little king we are,’ he muses, ‘bearing the diminutive of a mace.’ He is addressed directly as ‘Varlet’ by several characters in the play, also as ‘officer’. Jonson was well aware of the fact that by the time his play was performed (1598) ‘varlet’ also meant a rogue or rascal, and was frequently used as a term of address with that meaning.
   The word would now only be used vocatively, or in any other way, by someone who was joking.

A dictionary of epithets and terms of address . . 2015.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую
Synonyms:
, , , , ,


Look at other dictionaries:

  • varlet — Varlet, ou Valet, m. ac. (Car le François dit l un et l autre) est celuy qui sert sous un maistre subalterne, Vicarius famulus. Ainsi dit on Valet de garderobbe, Valet de Chambre, Valet fruictier, Valet de chiens, ausquels autres, qui sont sous… …   Thresor de la langue françoyse

  • varlet — ● varlet nom masculin (variante de l ancien français vaslet, valet) Jeune noble placé en service auprès d un seigneur pour faire l apprentissage de la chevalerie. ⇒VARLET, subst. masc. I. HIST. MÉDIÉV. Fils de gentilhomme placé auprès d un grand… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Varlet — can refer to:*a valet, especially as a knight s squire, or the court appointment of valet de chambre. *people with the surname Varlet, such as **Dominique Marie Varlet, Bishop of Babylon, (1678 1742) **Jean Varlet **Charles Varlet de La Grange… …   Wikipedia

  • Varlet — Var let, n. [OF. varlet, vaslet, vallet, servant, young man, young noble, dim of vassal. See {Vassal}, and cf. {Valet}.] [1913 Webster] 1. A servant, especially to a knight; an attendant; a valet; a footman. [Obs.] Spenser. Tusser. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • varlet — mid 15c., servant, attendant of a knight, from M.Fr. varlet (14c.), variant of vaslet, originally squire, young man, from O.Fr. vassal (see VASSAL (Cf. vassal)). The meaning rascal, rogue is 1540s …   Etymology dictionary

  • Varlet — Variante de Valet, que l on rencontre en Picardie et en Champagne Ardennes. Au départ le valet était un apprenti chevalier, mais très vite il a pris son sens actuel de domestique, qui est sans doute celui qui correspond au patronyme …   Noms de famille

  • varlet — m. valet ; domestique. voir domestic, serviciau …   Diccionari Personau e Evolutiu

  • varlet — [vär′lit] n. [ME < OFr, a servant, page, var. of vaslet (see VALET): for sense development see KNAVE] Archaic 1. an attendant 2. a youth serving as a knight s page 3. a scoundrel; knave …   English World dictionary

  • varlet — [15] Varlet and valet [16] are doublets – they come from the same ultimate source. This was Vulgar Latin *vassus, a borrowing from Old Celtic *wasso ‘young man, squire’. From *vassus were derived two medieval Latin diminutive forms: vassallus,… …   The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

  • varlet — [15] Varlet and valet [16] are doublets – they come from the same ultimate source. This was Vulgar Latin *vassus, a borrowing from Old Celtic *wasso ‘young man, squire’. From *vassus were derived two medieval Latin diminutive forms: vassallus,… …   Word origins

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
… Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”