goldsmith
/ˈɡoʊldˌsmɪθ/ noun, proper noun
Forms goldsmiths
- noun A person who makes, repairs or sells things of gold, especially jewelry.
- noun (obsolete) A banker (because the goldsmiths of London used to receive money on deposit, being equipped to keep it safely).
- proper noun A surname originating as an occupation.
Synonyms
Etymology
From Middle English goldsmith, from Old English goldsmiþ (“goldsmith”), from Proto-Germanic *gulþasmiþaz (“goldsmith”), equivalent to gold + smith. Cognate with Scots goldsmyth, gouldsmeth (“goldsmith”), Saterland Frisian Gouldsmid (“goldsmith”), West Frisian goudsmid (“goldsmith”), Dutch goudsmid (“goldsmith”), German Goldschmied (“goldsmith”), Danish guldsmed (“goldsmith”), Swedish guldsmed (“goldsmith”), Icelandic gullsmiður (“goldsmith”). Eclipsed non-native Middle English orbatour, orbatur (“goldsmith”) and orfever, orfevre (“goldsmith”), both borrowed from Old French.
From goldsmith.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [AS. goldsmiGold., and Smith.]
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “goldsmith”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details