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yeoman

/ˈjoʊmən/
IPA guide

Other forms: yeomen

A yeoman was a farmer who owned and worked his own land — not to be confused with "yo, man!"

Although experts aren't entirely sure of the origin of yeoman, they speculate that it is a shortened version of young man. Yeoman is now just a historic term and it is unlikely to be used to describe a landowning farmer today. There are modern uses for the word, however, including in the U.S. Navy, the Royal Navy, a Yeoman of the Guard, and similar military terms.

Definitions of yeoman
  1. noun
    a free man who cultivates his own land
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    type of:
    freeholder
    the owner of a freehold
  2. noun
    officer in the (ceremonial) bodyguard of the British monarch
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    type of:
    bodyguard, escort
    someone who escorts and protects a prominent person
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