waitron en · NOUN · etymology 1
Etymology
Coined as a gender-neutral substitute for waiter and waitress, this is one of the few words with the gender-neutral suffix -ron to have seen much use, probably re-inforced by rhyming with patron. (Some references instead analyse it as using the same "machinelike" suffix -tron as waitron (“mechanical waiter”), but more likely it uses -ron like laundron and like waiter and waitress use -er/-ress not *-ter/*-tress.)
Meanings
-
(nonstandard, rare) A waiter or waitress.
With adolescent perversity, he turned up his nose at all of the elegant French items on the Closerie's menu and scandalized the waitron by demanding corned-beef hash—fried extra crisp—with poached eggs, a slice of fresh papaya with lime, banana-walnut bread, and a pitcher of Mexican chocolate.
1992, Julian May, Jack the Bodiless, Knopf, →ISBN, →OL:Table Service is the combined interaction between the guest and the waitron whilst seated at a table in the establishment's restaurant.
2004 September 28, Tracey Dalton, The Food and Beverage Handbook, Lansdowne: Juta and Company Ltd., →ISBN, →OL, page 48:Come back here with your cut glass, posh English accent and waitrons everywhere will melt at your feet.
2010 May 10, Sam Cowen, “Jo'burg and London, relatively speaking”, in Daily Telegraph, →ISSN:If your wine waitron smells the cork, s/he's probably a beginner at this game because you can tell absolutely nothing by smelling the cork.
2008 February 1, Jenny Ratcliffe-Wright, Spit Or Swallow: A Guide for the Wine Virgin, Lansdowne: Double Storey, →ISBN, →OL, page 89:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| waitrons | Number=Plur | lexicographic |