porter

pronunciation

How to pronounce porter in British English: UK [ˈpɔːtə(r)] word uk audio image

How to pronounce porter in American English: US [ˈpɔːrtər] word us audio image

Noun:

a person employed to carry luggage and supplies
someone who guards an entrance
a railroad employee who assists passengers (especially on sleeping cars)
a very dark sweet ale brewed from roasted unmalted barley
Verb:

carry luggage or supplies

Word Origin

porter: porter: English has two distinct words porter, one for a ‘person who carries things’ [14] and the other for a ‘door attendant’ [13]. The former comes via Old French portour from medieval Latin portātor, a derivative of Latin portāre ‘carry’ (source of English import, portable, etc). It is generally assumed that porter the beer, first heard of in the 18th century, was so called from its being a favourite drink of porters. Porter ‘door attendant’ comes via Anglo-Norman porter from late Latin portārius, a derivative of Latin porta ‘gate’ (source of English port, as in porthole).

porter (n.1): "person who carries," late 14c. (mid-13c. as a surname), from Anglo-French portour, Old French porteor "porter, bearer; reporter" (12c.), from Late Latin portatorem (nominative portator) "carrier, one who carries," from past participle stem of Latin portare "to carry" (see port (n.1)).

porter (n.2): "doorkeeper, janitor," mid-13c. (late 12c. as a surname), from Anglo-French portour, Old French portier "gatekeeper" (12c.), from Late Latin portarius "gatekeeper," from Latin porta "gate" (see port (n.2)).

porter (n.3): type of dark beer, 1734, short for porter's ale (1721), from porter (n.1), because the beer was made for or preferred by porters and other laborers, being cheap and strong.