tonsor

English

Etymology

From Latin tōnsor (“barber, hairdresser”), from the supine root of tondēre (“to shave, to shear”) + -or (“-or: forming agent nouns”).

Noun

tonsor (plural tonsors)

1. (obsolete) Synonym of barber.
   • 1749, Henry Fielding, The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling, volumes (please specify |volume=I to VI), London: A[ndrew] Millar, […], →OCLC:

     “So, tonsor,” says Jones, “I find you have more trades than one; how came you not to inform me of this last night?”

   • 1822, Sir Walter Scott, chapter 27, in The Fortunes of Nigel:

     He was speedily shown the way to such an emporium of intelligence, and soon found he was likely to hear all he desired to know, and much more, while his head was subjected to the art of a nimble tonsor.

Related terms

• tonsorial
• tonsure

 

References

• “tonsor”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.

Anagrams

• Orston, rotons, troons

Latin

Etymology

From the supine stem of tondeō (“to clip, to trim”) +‎ -tor (“-or”, suffix forming agent nouns).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈton.sor/, [ˈt̪õːs̠ɔr]
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈton.sor/, [ˈt̪ɔnsor]

Noun

tōnsor m (genitive tōnsōris, feminine tōnstrīx); third declension

1. barber, a person who cuts hair professionally, particularly for men.
2. gardener, a person who prunes and trims plants professionally.

Declension

Third-declension noun.

Case	Singular	Plural
Nominative	tōnsor	tōnsōrēs
Genitive	tōnsōris	tōnsōrum
Dative	tōnsōrī	tōnsōribus
Accusative	tōnsōrem	tōnsōrēs
Ablative	tōnsōre	tōnsōribus
Vocative	tōnsor	tōnsōrēs

Related terms

• tondeō
• tōnsilis
• tōnsiō
• tōnstrīcula
• tōnstrīna
• tōnstrīnum
• tōnstrīx
• tōnsus
• tōnsōrius
• tōnsūra

 

References

• “tonsor”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “tonsor”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers
• tonsor in Gaffiot, Félix (1934) Dictionnaire illustré latin-français, Hachette.
• “tonsor”, in Harry Thurston Peck, editor (1898), Harper's Dictionary of Classical Antiquities, New York: Harper & Brothers

Spanish

Noun

tonsor m (plural tonsores)

1. tonsor