A man who operates a printing press, or a male journalist or newspaper reporter.
From 'press' (the printing machine, from Latin 'pressus' meaning 'pressed') + '-man.' The word evolved with printing technology in the 1600s-1700s.
The word 'pressman' carries the history of printing—it meant someone running a physical printing press, then evolved to mean journalists themselves. As printing changed, the word's primary meaning shifted!
Pressman assumed male default for printing press operators historically; newspapers codified 'pressman' into institutional language despite women typists and press workers being common.
Use 'press operator' or 'printing press worker' to reflect occupational reality regardless of gender.
["press operator","printing press worker","presser"]
Women were essential to 19th-20th century print production but systematized out of titles; crediting 'press workers' restores occupational accuracy.
Complete word intelligence in one call. Free tier — 50 lookups/day.