Liberal Dictionary English Dictionary
noun, plural chap·men.
- British. a peddler.
- Archaic. a merchant.
noun
- Frank Mich·ler [mik-ler] /ˈmɪk lər/, 1864–1945, U.S. ornithologist, museum curator, and author.
- George,1559–1634, English poet, dramatist, and translator.
- John. Appleseed, Johnny.
noun plural -men
- archaic a trader, esp an itinerant pedlar
noun
- George 1559–1634, English dramatist and poet, noted for his translation of Homer
“peddler, itinerant tradesman,” Middle English form of Old English ceapman “tradesman,” from West Germanic compound *kaupman- (cf. Old High German choufman, German Kauffman, Middle Dutch and Dutch koopman), formed with equivalents of man (n.) + West Germanic *kaup- (cf. Old Saxon cop, Old Frisian kap “trade, purchase,” Middle Dutch coop, Dutch koop “trade, market, bargain,” kauf “trader,” Old English ceap “barter, business; a purchase”), from Proto-Germanic *kaupoz- (cf. Danish kjøb “purchase, bargain,” Old Norse kaup “bargain, pay;” cf. also Old Church Slavonic kupiti “to buy,” a Germanic loan-word), probably an early Germanic borrowing from Latin caupo (genitive cauponis) “petty tradesman, huckster,” of unknown origin. Cf. also cheap (adj.).