Clearstarcher

/ˈklɪrstɑrtʃər/ noun

Definition

A person, typically a laundry worker or textile craftsperson, who applies clearstarch to fabrics to stiffen and finish them.

Etymology

From 'clearstarch' plus '-er' (Old English suffix for agent nouns). A professional occupation in the textile and laundry industries, particularly common in the 1700s-1900s.

Kelly Says

This job has almost completely vanished from the modern economy—there are probably no professional 'clearstarchers' left in the world, making it a linguistic fossil of an extinct occupation.

Related Words

Explore More Words

Get the Word Orb API

Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.