gentleman Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun a man of refinement
  2. noun a manservant who acts as a personal attendant to his employer
    valet de chambre; man; gentleman's gentleman; valet.
    • Jeeves was Bertie Wooster's man

WordNet

Gen"tle*man noun
Etymology
OE. gentilman nobleman; gentil noble + man man; cf. F. gentilhomme.
Wordforms
plural Gentlemen
Definitions
  1. A man well born; one of good family; one above the condition of a yeoman.
  2. One of gentle or refined manners; a well-bred man.
  3. (Her.) One who bears arms, but has no title.
  4. The servant of a man of rank.
    The count's gentleman, one Cesario. Shak.
  5. A man, irrespective of condition; -- used esp. in the plural (= citizens; people), in addressing men in popular assemblies, etc. ✍ In Great Britain, the term gentleman is applied in a limited sense to those having coats of arms, but who are without a title, and, in this sense, gentlemen hold a middle rank between the nobility and yeomanry. In a more extended sense, it includes every man above the rank of yeoman, comprehending the nobility. In the United States, the term is applied to men of education and good breeding of every occupation.

Webster 1913