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Valet

 - 3 dictionary results

val⋅et

[va-ley, val-it, val-ey] noun, verb, -et⋅ed, -et⋅ing.
–noun
1. a male servant who attends to the personal needs of his employer, as by taking care of clothing or the like; manservant.
2. a man who is employed for cleaning and pressing, laundering, and similar services for patrons of a hotel, passengers on a ship, etc.
3. an attendant who parks cars for patrons at a hotel, restaurant, etc.
4. a stand or rack for holding coats, hats, etc.
–verb (used with object), verb (used without object)
5. to serve as a valet.

Origin:
1560–70; < F; MF va(s)let squire, equiv. to vas- (< ML vassus servant) + -let -let; see vassal


val⋅et⋅less, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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val·et   (vāl'ĭt, vāl'ā, vā-lā')   
n.  
  1. A man's male servant, who takes care of his clothes and performs other personal services.

  2. An employee, as in a hotel or on a ship, who performs personal services for guests or passengers.

v.   val·et·ed, val·et·ing, val·ets

v.   tr.
To act as a personal servant to; attend.
v.   intr.
To work as a valet.

[Middle English valette, from Old French vaslet, valet, servant, squire, from Vulgar Latin *vassellitus, diminutive of *vassus, vassal; see vassal.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Word Origin & History

valet 
"personal man-servant," 1567, from Fr. valet, from O.Fr. valet, variant of vaslet "man's servant," originally "squire, young man," from Gallo-Romance *vassellittus "young nobleman, squire, page," dim. of M.L. vassallus, from vassus "servant" (see vassal). Modern sense is usually short for valet de chambre; the general sense of "male household servant of the meaner sort" going with the variant form varlet. First recorded use of valet parking is from 1960.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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