boilermaker
boilermaker Lexical Profile
boilermaker Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A skilled metalworker who fabricates, assembles, installs, and repairs heavy-duty boilers, closed vats, and other large pressure vessels.
"The shipyard hired an experienced boilermaker to inspect and weld the massive steel pressure tanks."
North American An alcoholic drink consisting of a shot of whiskey served alongside a glass of beer as a chaser, or with the shot dropped directly into the beer.
"After a long shift at the factory, he sat at the counter and ordered a boilermaker from the bartender."
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed in the early 19th century as a compound of 'boiler' and 'maker' during the Industrial Revolution. The sense referring to a shot of whiskey accompanied by a glass of beer emerged in American slang in the late 19th or early 20th century, reputedly named as the favored after-work drink of industrial metalworkers.