barbermonger

English

Etymology

From barber +‎ monger, literally "one who frequents the barber's shop."

Noun

barbermonger (plural barbermongers)

1. (obsolete) A fop; a dandy.
   • c. 1603–1606, William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of King Lear”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene ii], page 292, column 1:

     Ile make a sop oth' Moonshine of you, you whoreson, Culyenly barbermonger, draw.

   • Nov. 20, 1802. "The Censor" in the "Original Essays." section of Boston Weekly Magazine, No. IV, Vol. I., p. 13 co. 2

     Those who live in this century, have an invincible antipathy to every thing natural an original, and I call for nothing else in justification of this, than any girl of fifteen, and boy of twenty, within hearing of this place--only look at the paint on her cheeks, and observe his dress, the poor girl stands trembling with cold, (nothing under heavens on but a little muslin hardly decent in appearance !) and he! an unmannerly barber-monger, has all her cloths stuffed into his 'neckerchief! Ah, young man, you need not try to stick your hair up, only look in the glass, and if it don't go up itself, I'm very much mistaken.

References

• “barbermonger”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.