Clockmakers

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A person or company that constructs and repairs timekeeping devices, specializing in clocks and sometimes watches
2. An individual skilled in the art of crafting and servicing time-measuring instruments, particularly those that indicate hours and minutes
3. A tradesperson engaged in the design and maintenance of clocks, ensuring their accuracy and functionality

Etymology: "Clockmakers" is simply the plural of "clockmaker", so the history lies in its two parts. "Clock" came into English from Middle Dutch "klocke" (bell), and the sense shifted from the bell that rang the hours to the timepiece itself. "Maker" comes from Old English "macian", a word for shaping or making things, and it has long been used to form compounds for craftspeople. The compound "clockmaker" appears in Middle English as "clockemaker" and "clokkemakyer", showing that people were already combining the two words to name the trade by the time the English language was recording its spelling variants. Because a clock was once a large, bell-striking mechanism rather than a small device, the trade began as a kind of metalworking and only later became associated with the fine instruments we now think of when we hear the word.

Synonyms: horologists, watchmakers