English [ edit ]
Etymology [ edit ]
From Middle English waccheman , equivalent to watch + -man .
Pronunciation [ edit ]
watchman (plural watchmen )
One set to watch; a person who keeps guard, especially one who guards a building, or the streets of a city, by night.
Synonym: watcher
Hyponym: night watchman
1829 , Edward Bulwer Lytton , chapter XVIII, in The Disowned [1] :The visits of the watchman to that (then) obscure and ill-inhabited neighborhood were more regulated by his indolence than his duty; and Clarence knew that it would be in vain to listen for his cry or tarry for his assistance.
1886 , Peter Christen Asbjørnsen , translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales , page 8:Well, it so happened that Stine and the cook were sitting in their room one evening, mending and darning their things; it was near bedtime, for the watchman had already sung out "Ten o'clock," but somehow the darning and the sewing went on very slowly indeed[.]
1950 March, H. A. Vallance, “On Foot Across the Forth Bridge”, in Railway Magazine , page 149 :Watchmen are stationed continuously at each end of the bridge, and the main spans are patrolled twice during the night.
Derived terms [ edit ]
Related terms [ edit ]
Translations [ edit ]
guard
Arabic: حَارِس m ( ḥāris )
Egyptian Arabic: حارس m ( ḥāris )
Aromanian: avigljitor m
Azerbaijani: gözətçi (az)
Bashkir: һаҡсы ( haqsı )
Belarusian: вартаўні́к m ( vartaŭník ) , сто́раж m ( stóraž ) , ахо́ўнік m ( axóŭnik )
Bulgarian: пазач (bg) m ( pazač ) , стража (bg) f ( straža )
Catalan: guaita (ca) m
Chinese:
Mandarin: 看守者 (zh) ( kānshǒuzhě )
Czech: hlídač (cs) m , strážce (cs) m
Danish: vagt (da) c , nattevagt (da) c ( night watch ) , vægter c ( historical, in market towns )
Egyptian: (wršy )
Finnish: vartija (fi)
French: guetteur (fr) m , sentinelle (fr) f
Old French: gaite m
Galician: garda (gl) m , sentinela (gl) f , vixía m , vixilante m or f
German: Wächter (de) m
Hindi: पहरेदार (hi) m ( pahredār ) , चौकीदार (hi) m ( caukīdār )
Hungarian: őrszem (hu)
Irish: seiceadóir m
Italian: guardiano (it) , sorvegliante (it)
Japanese: 警備員 (ja) ( けいびいん, keibiin ) , ウォッチマン ( wotchiman )
Korean: 경비원(警備員) (ko) ( gyeongbiwon ) , 야경꾼 ( yagyeongkkun )
Latin: custos m , vigil (la) m , excubitor m
Macedonian: па́зач m ( pázač ) , чу́вар m ( čúvar )
Maori: kaimataara
Navajo: haʼasídí
Nivkh: йытӈунивх ( jətŋunivx )
Occitan: gacha f , gach m , gaita (oc) f , gait m , sentinèla f
Persian: نگهبان (fa) ( negahbân ) , پاسدار (fa) ( pâsdâr )
Plautdietsch: Loagawach m
Polish: stróż (pl) m
Portuguese: vigia (pt) m or f
Romanian: paznic (ro) m , străjer (ro) m , păzitor (ro) m , gardian (ro) m
Russian: сто́рож (ru) m ( stórož ) , охра́нник (ru) m ( oxránnik )
Slovak: strážca m
Spanish: guardián (es) m , celador (es) m , guarda (es) m or f , vigía (es) m or f , centinela (es) m , encargado (es) m , vigilante (es) m or f
Swahili: mlinzi (sw) , mabawabu (sw)
Swedish: väktare (sv) c
Taos: xína
Thai: ยาม (th) ( yaam ) , ภารโรง ( paan-roong )
Turkish: bekçi (tr) , nöbetçi (tr) , gözetmen (tr) , gardiyan (tr)
Ukrainian: сто́рож m ( stórož ) , вартівни́к (uk) m ( vartivnýk ) , охоро́нник m ( oxorónnyk ) , охоро́нець m ( oxorónecʹ )
Urdu: چَوکِیدار m ( caukīdār )
Welsh: gwyliwr m
See also [ edit ]