"switchman" meaning in English

See switchman in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

Forms: switchmen [plural]
Etymology: Etymology tree English switch Proto-Indo-European *mon- Proto-Germanic *mann- Proto-West Germanic *mann Old English mann Middle English man Middle English -man English -man English switchman From switch + -man. Etymology templates: {{ety|en|:af|switch|-man|text=+|tree=1}} Etymology tree English switch Proto-Indo-European *mon- Proto-Germanic *mann- Proto-West Germanic *mann Old English mann Middle English man Middle English -man English -man English switchman [Appendix:Glossary#inherited|Inherited]] from", "keyword" : "inherited" } ], "lang_name" : "Proto-Germanic", "term" : "*mann-", "status" : "ok", "lang" : "gem-pro" } ], "keyword_label" : "Inherited from", "keyword" : "inherited" } ], "lang_name" : "Proto-West Germanic", "term" : "*mann", "status" : "ok", "lang" : "gmw-pro" } ], "keyword_label" : "Inherited from", "keyword" : "inherited" } ], "lang_name" : "Old English", "term" : "mann", "status" : "ok", "lang" : "ang" } ], "keyword_label" : "Inherited from", "keyword" : "inherited" } ], "lang_name" : "Middle English", "term" : "man", "status" : "ok", "lang" : "enm" } ], "keyword_label" : "From", "keyword" : "from" } ], "lang_name" : "Middle English", "term" : "-man", "status" : "inline", "lang" : "enm" } ], "keyword_label" : "Inherited from", "keyword" : "inherited" } ], "lang_name" : "English", "term" : "-man", "status" : "ok", "lang" : "en" } ], "keyword_label" : "From", "is_group" : true, "keyword" : "affix" } ], "lang_name" : "English", "term" : "switchman", "status" : "ok", "lang" : "en" }" data-lang="en" data-title="switchman"> From switch + -man. Head templates: {{en-noun|switchmen}} switchman (plural switchmen)
  1. (rail transport) A person who operates railway switches that route trains onto rail tracks. Synonyms: pointsman Translations (railway switch operator): κλειδούχος (kleidoúchos) [masculine] (Greek), strelocnikka (Ingrian), свртничар (svrtničar) [masculine] (Macedonian), стре́лочник (stréločnik) (Russian)
    Sense id: en-switchman-en-noun-en:pointsman Categories (other): Rail transportation, English entries referencing missing etymons, English entries with etymology texts, English entries with etymology trees, English entries with incorrect language header, English terms suffixed with -man, Entries with translation boxes, Pages using etymon with no ID, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Pages with etymology trees, Terms with Greek translations, Terms with Ingrian translations, Terms with Macedonian translations, Terms with Russian translations Disambiguation of English entries referencing missing etymons: 49 51 Disambiguation of English entries with etymology texts: 48 52 Disambiguation of English entries with etymology trees: 48 52 Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 46 54 Disambiguation of English terms suffixed with -man: 55 45 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 65 35 Disambiguation of Pages using etymon with no ID: 52 48 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 51 49 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 51 49 Disambiguation of Pages with etymology trees: 51 49 Disambiguation of Terms with Greek translations: 46 54 Disambiguation of Terms with Ingrian translations: 60 40 Disambiguation of Terms with Macedonian translations: 57 43 Disambiguation of Terms with Russian translations: 56 44 Topics: rail-transport, railways, transport Disambiguation of 'railway switch operator': 57 43
  2. (rail transport) A person whose job is to help in the switching of railcars in a railway yard. Synonyms: shunter, switcher, hostler, yard jockey
    Sense id: en-switchman-en-noun-en:yard_jockey Categories (other): Rail transportation, English entries referencing missing etymons, English entries with etymology texts, English entries with etymology trees, English entries with incorrect language header, English terms suffixed with -man, Pages using etymon with no ID, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Pages with etymology trees, Terms with Greek translations Disambiguation of English entries referencing missing etymons: 49 51 Disambiguation of English entries with etymology texts: 48 52 Disambiguation of English entries with etymology trees: 48 52 Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 46 54 Disambiguation of English terms suffixed with -man: 55 45 Disambiguation of Pages using etymon with no ID: 52 48 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 51 49 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 51 49 Disambiguation of Pages with etymology trees: 51 49 Disambiguation of Terms with Greek translations: 46 54 Topics: rail-transport, railways, transport
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Related terms: switch engine, switcher

Inflected forms

Alternative forms

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  "etymology_text": "Etymology tree\nEnglish switch\nProto-Indo-European *mon-\nProto-Germanic *mann-\nProto-West Germanic *mann\nOld English mann\nMiddle English man\nMiddle English -man\nEnglish -man\nEnglish switchman\nFrom switch + -man.",
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        "A person who operates railway switches that route trains onto rail tracks."
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        "(rail transport) A person who operates railway switches that route trains onto rail tracks."
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        "A person whose job is to help in the switching of railcars in a railway yard."
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        "(rail transport) A person whose job is to help in the switching of railcars in a railway yard."
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      "code": "el",
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      "lang_code": "el",
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      "word": "strelocnikka"
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      "lang_code": "mk",
      "roman": "svrtničar",
      "sense": "railway switch operator",
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        "masculine"
      ],
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    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "lang_code": "ru",
      "roman": "stréločnik",
      "sense": "railway switch operator",
      "word": "стре́лочник"
    }
  ],
  "word": "switchman"
}

Download raw JSONL data for switchman meaning in English (4.9kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2026-06-07 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2026-06-01 using wiktextract (e79dea5 and 7f4db16). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.