factotum
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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English [edit]
Etymology [edit]
From New Latin, (“do everything”), from Latin fac, present singular imperative of faciō (“do, make”) + tōtum (“everything”); attested in English from 1566.
Pronunciation [edit]
Noun [edit]
factotum (plural factotums)
- (dated) A person having many diverse activities or responsibilities.
- (dated) A general servant.
- 1847, Herman Melville, Omoo, Chapter 73,
- I had almost forgotten Monee, the grinning old man who prepared our meal. […] He was Po-Po’s factotum—cook, butler, and climber of the bread-fruit and cocoa-nut trees; and, added to all else, a mighty favourite with his mistress; with whom he would sit smoking and gossiping by the hour.
- 1847, Herman Melville, Omoo, Chapter 73,
- A jack of all trades.
- An individual employed to do all sorts of duties.
Synonyms [edit]
- (jack of all trades): handyman, jack of all trades, sciolist
- (general servant): do-all
Translations [edit]
person having many responsibilities
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general servant
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jack-of-all-trades
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References [edit]
- factotum in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
Dutch [edit]
Pronunciation [edit]
- IPA: /fɑkˈtoː.tʏm/
- Hyphenation: fac‧to‧tum
Etymology [edit]
From New Latin, (“do everything”), from Latin fac, present singular imperative of faciō (“do, make”) + tōtum (“everything”).
Noun [edit]
factotum m (plural factotums, diminutive factotumpje)
- factotum (jack-of-all-trades)
