chamberlain

[cheym-ber-lin] /ˈtʃeɪm bər lɪn/
noun
1.
an official charged with the management of the living quarters of a sovereign or member of the nobility.
2.
an official who receives rents and revenues, as of a municipal corporation; treasurer.
3.
the high steward or factor of a member of the nobility.
4.
a high official of a royal court.
Origin
1175-1225; Middle English < Old French, variant of chamberlenc < Frankish *kamerling, equivalent to kamer (< Latin camera room; see chamber) + -ling -ling1
Related forms
underchamberlain, noun

Chamberlain

[cheym-ber-lin] /ˈtʃeɪm bər lɪn/
noun
1.
(Arthur) Neville, 1869–1940, British statesman: prime minister 1937–40.
2.
Joseph, 1836–1914, British statesman (father of Sir Austen and Neville Chamberlain).
3.
Sir (Joseph) Austen, 1863–1937, British statesman: Nobel Peace Prize 1925.
4.
Owen, 1920–2006, U.S. physicist: Nobel Prize 1959.
5.
Wilt(on Norman) ("Wilt the Stilt") 1936–1999, U.S. basketball player.
Examples from the web for chamberlain
  • The morning after his arrival, the emperor's chamberlain brought him word that his attendance was required.
  • Anna's chamberlain suggested that the ceremony take place in a palace made of ice.
  • At that time as the chief chamberlain of both, he probably witnessed the whole process on spot.
British Dictionary definitions for chamberlain

chamberlain

/ˈtʃeɪmbəlɪn/
noun
1.
an officer who manages the household of a king
2.
the steward of a nobleman or landowner
3.
the treasurer of a municipal corporation
Derived Forms
chamberlainship, noun
Word Origin
C13: from Old French chamberlayn, of Frankish origin; related to Old High German chamarling chamberlain, Latin camerachamber

Chamberlain

/ˈtʃeɪmbəlɪn/
noun
1.
Sir (Joseph) Austen. 1863–1937, British Conservative statesman; foreign secretary (1924–29); awarded a Nobel peace prize for his negotiation of the Locarno Pact (1925)
2.
his father, Joseph. 1836–1914, British statesman; originally a Liberal, he resigned in 1886 over Home Rule for Ireland and became leader of the Liberal Unionists; a leading advocate of preferential trading agreements with members of the British Empire
3.
his son, (Arthur) Neville. 1869–1940, British Conservative statesman; prime minister (1937–40): pursued a policy of appeasement towards Germany; following the German invasion of Poland, he declared war on Germany on Sept 3, 1939
4.
Owen. 1920–2006, US physicist, who discovered the antiproton. Nobel prize for physics jointly with Emilio Segré 1959
Word Origin and History for chamberlain
n.

early 13c., from Old French chamberlenc "chamberlain, steward, treasurer" (Modern French chambellan), from a Germanic source (perhaps Frankish *kamerling; cf. Old High German chamarling, German Kämmerling), from Latin camera "chamber, room" (see camera) + Germanic diminutive suffix -ling.

chamberlain in the Bible

a confidential servant of the king (Gen. 37:36; 39:1). In Rom. 16:23 mention is made of "Erastus the chamberlain." Here the word denotes the treasurer of the city, or the quaestor, as the Romans styled him. He is almost the only convert from the higher ranks of whom mention is made (comp. Acts 17:34). Blastus, Herod's "chamberlain" (Acts 12:20), was his personal attendant or valet-de-chambre. The Hebrew word _saris_, thus translated in Esther 1:10, 15; 2:3, 14, 21, etc., properly means an eunuch (as in the marg.), as it is rendered in Isa. 39:7; 56:3.