Valets

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An individual employed to assist with personal grooming and wardrobe management is commonly considered a personal servant; this role may include tasks such as garment care and valet services for vehicles; they may also provide various hospitality services related to personal needs
2. A person who assists with dressing and personal preparations ; someone who parks or retrieves vehicles for others
3. An attendant responsible for helping a person with their clothes and grooming ; a worker who handles parking and moving guests' automobiles

Etymology: The word "valets" is the plural of "valet," and the singular has a surprisingly humble ancestor. It comes from Old French "vaslet," a diminutive of "vassal," meaning a young servant or attendant, and it is itself a relative of "varlet," which at one point was a rough word for a boy or servant of low rank. Over time the "varlet" branch sank in English, while "valet" kept the sense of a personal servant who looks after a master's dress and grooming. The sense of a worker who parks guests' cars is a much more recent extension. Once cars became common, hotels and restaurants needed staff to take them from arriving guests, and the same title, borrowed from the household servant who handled a gentleman's clothes, was applied to them. The job moved from the dressing room to the driveway, but the name stayed.

Synonyms: attendants, servants, helpers, aides, assistants

Antonyms: masters, employers, bosses, owners, leaders