Courtier
noun
A person who often spends time in a royal court as a companion or adviser to the king or queen.
He worked his way up from a simple servant to a courtier in the King's palace.
Often appears as...
- royal courtier
- unscrupulous courtier
Usage tips
Formal
Historical
noun
A person who flatters or tries to please people in power in order to get some advantage.
She despised the courtiers that surrounded the president, always seeking for their own gain.
Often appears as...
- sycophantic courtier
- ambitious courtier
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Political
noun
A person who often spends time in a royal court as a companion or adviser to the king or queen.
He worked his way up from a simple servant to a courtier in the King's palace.
Often appears as...
- royal courtier
- unscrupulous courtier
Usage tips
Formal
Historical
noun
A person who flatters or tries to please people in power in order to get some advantage.
She despised the courtiers that surrounded the president, always seeking for their own gain.
Often appears as...
- sycophantic courtier
- ambitious courtier
Usage tips
Formal, Disapproving
Political
Definition 1 of 2
Pro Tip 1/3Historical Usage
Originally referred to attendants in a royal palace; think medieval times or classic literature.
In Shakespeare's plays, courtiers are often caught in royal intrigues.
Pro Tip 2/3Narrative Detail
In stories, a courtier character could add a sense of grandeur or historical accuracy.
The novel's vivid descriptions of the courtiers' attire brought the Tudor court to life.
Pro Tip 3/3Cultural Depictions
Courtiers are often portrayed as scheming or manipulative in historical dramas.
The film depicted the courtier as a master of political maneuvering.
Compare with
aristocratattendantcompanionflattergentlemannoblemansycophanttoady
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Video examples
Safari Live - Day 320 PIPE...
leopards tails were slightly longer so they've got a different name it's pen therap artist just like the african tippet but it's pen therasp are Pardus courtier and they their eye color also I never saw any lipids with sort of blue or greenish eyes it would have really sort of brown hazel eyes and then the
Video examples
The origins of ballet -...
It also involved rules governing everything from attire to where one could walk or sit in relation to the King. Over time, the study of ballet became a central element of court life, and proper grasp of the etiquette could make or break one's success as a courtier.
Video examples
Defending a Monkey Harem...
after a 16th-century courtier who wrote on manipulating political power. Instead of launching into an attack, the politician here tries to grab a baby. Monkey etiquette dictates nobody attacks anyone holding a baby, so they're like living flak jackets.
Video examples
Thomas P. Campbell:...
depicting lavish court scenes with courtiers and dandies who would look quite at home in the pages of the fashion press today, thick woods with hunters crashing through the undergrowth in pursuit of wild boars and deer,
Video examples
Safari Live - Day 320 PIPE...
leopards tails were slightly longer so they've got a different name it's pen therap artist just like the african tippet but it's pen therasp are Pardus courtier and they their eye color also I never saw any lipids with sort of blue or greenish eyes it would have really sort of brown hazel eyes and then the
Video examples
The origins of ballet -...
It also involved rules governing everything from attire to where one could walk or sit in relation to the King. Over time, the study of ballet became a central element of court life, and proper grasp of the etiquette could make or break one's success as a courtier.
Video examples
Defending a Monkey Harem...
after a 16th-century courtier who wrote on manipulating political power. Instead of launching into an attack, the politician here tries to grab a baby. Monkey etiquette dictates nobody attacks anyone holding a baby, so they're like living flak jackets.
Video examples
Thomas P. Campbell:...
depicting lavish court scenes with courtiers and dandies who would look quite at home in the pages of the fashion press today, thick woods with hunters crashing through the undergrowth in pursuit of wild boars and deer,
Example 1 of 4
Quote examples
Prashant Bhushan
Indian Lawyer
I am pained that I have been held guilty of committing contempt of the Court whose majesty I have tried to uphold - not as a courtier or cheerleader but as a humble guard - for over three decades, at some personal and professional cost. I am pained, not because I may be punished, but because I have been grossly misunderstood.
Quote examples
Edward VIII
English Royalty
Perhaps one of the only positive pieces of advice that I was ever given was that supplied by an old courtier who observed: Only two rules really count. Never miss an opportunity to relieve yourself; never miss a chance to sit down and rest your feet.
Quote examples
Walter Lippmann
American Journalist
The best servants of the people, like the best valets, must whisper unpleasant truths in the master's ear. It is the court fool, not the foolish courtier, whom the king can least afford to lose.
Quote examples
Pope Francis
Argentinian Clergyman
Leaders of the Church have often been Narcissus, flattered and sickeningly excited by their courtiers. The court is the leprosy of the papacy.
Quote examples
Robert Gottlieb
American Writer
The finest chroniclers of the great and the near-great have often been courtiers - the Duc de Saint-Simon, for instance, or Lady Murasaki.
Quote examples
Ralph Waldo Emerson
American Philosopher
The smoothest curled courtier in the boudoirs of a palace has an animal nature, rude and aboriginal as a white bear.
Quote examples
Dave Hickey
American Critic
Art editors and critics - people like me - have become a courtier class.
Quote examples
Prashant Bhushan
Indian Lawyer
I am pained that I have been held guilty of committing contempt of the Court whose majesty I have tried to uphold - not as a courtier or cheerleader but as a humble guard - for over three decades, at some personal and professional cost. I am pained, not because I may be punished, but because I have been grossly misunderstood.
Quote examples
Edward VIII
English Royalty
Perhaps one of the only positive pieces of advice that I was ever given was that supplied by an old courtier who observed: Only two rules really count. Never miss an opportunity to relieve yourself; never miss a chance to sit down and rest your feet.
Quote examples
Walter Lippmann
American Journalist
The best servants of the people, like the best valets, must whisper unpleasant truths in the master's ear. It is the court fool, not the foolish courtier, whom the king can least afford to lose.
Quote examples
Pope Francis
Argentinian Clergyman
Leaders of the Church have often been Narcissus, flattered and sickeningly excited by their courtiers. The court is the leprosy of the papacy.
Quote examples
Robert Gottlieb
American Writer
The finest chroniclers of the great and the near-great have often been courtiers - the Duc de Saint-Simon, for instance, or Lady Murasaki.
Quote examples
Ralph Waldo Emerson
American Philosopher
The smoothest curled courtier in the boudoirs of a palace has an animal nature, rude and aboriginal as a white bear.
Quote examples
Dave Hickey
American Critic
Art editors and critics - people like me - have become a courtier class.
Example 1 of 7
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