carpenter

1 of 2

noun

car·​pen·​ter ˈkär-pən-tər 

ˈkär-pᵊm-tər

: a worker who builds or repairs wooden structures or their structural parts

carpenter

2 of 2

verb

carpentered; carpentering ˈkär-pən-t(ə-)riŋ 

intransitive verb

: to follow the trade of a carpenter

carpentered when he was young

transitive verb

1

: to make by or as if by carpentry

2

: to put together often in a mechanical manner

carpentered many television scripts

Examples of carpenter in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Those who were lost represented a cross-section of Baltimore: line cook, lawyer, bus driver, engineer, machinist, teacher, restaurant owner, carpenter, veteran, physician, salesman and admissions coordinator for an addiction recovery center. —Jessica Gallagher, New York Times, 23 May 2024

One of the employees, a 64-year-old district carpenter, died from his wounds Nov. 17, and his death was later ruled a homicide. —Jason Green, The Mercury News, 23 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, from Anglo-French carpenter, charpenter, from Latin carpentarius carriage maker, from carpentum carriage, of Celtic origin; akin to Old Irish carpat chariot, carr vehicle — more at car

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Verb

circa 1815, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

Phrases Containing carpenter

• carpenter ant
• carpenter bee

Kids Definition

carpenter

noun

car·​pen·​ter

ˈkär-pən-tər,

ˈkärp-ᵊm-tər

: a worker who builds or repairs wooden structures

carpenter verb