chief cook and bottle washer en · NOUN
Pronunciation
- (US) audio
Meanings
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(humorous, informal) Someone whose responsibilities include absolutely everything, from the highest level (chief cook) to the lowest (bottle washer).
Why sometimes I acts cook, steward, cabin boy, sailor, mate, and bottle washer, for matter 'f that, for there's on'y four on us aboard on her;
1809, Bartlett Jere Whiting, quoting Abraham B. Lindsley, Love and Friendship; or, Yankee Notions: A Comedy in Three Acts, quoted in Early American Proverbs and Proverbial Phrases, Dramatic Repository, Shakespeare-Gallery: D Longworth, →ISBN, act II, page 40:Near-synonyms: man Friday, gal Friday
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| chief cooks and bottle washers | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| chief cook and bottle-washer | alternative | lexicographic |
Synonyms
head cook and bottle washer · man Friday · factotum · bottlewasher · do-all · head chef and bottle washer · gal Friday