fermerere

Middle English

Alternative forms

• fermerer

Etymology

From Old French enfermerier, from enfermerie (“infirmary”). See infirmary.

Noun

fermerere (plural fermereres)

1. The officer in charge of the infirmary in a religious house.
   • late 14th century, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Summoner's Tale, The Canterbury Tales, line 1859-1862:

     ‘So dide our sexteyn and our fermerer,
     That han been trewe freres fifty yeer;
     They may now, god be thanked of his lone,
     Maken hir Iubilee and walke allone.’

     ‘So did our sacristan and the head of our infirmary,
     That have been true friars fifty years;
     They may now, God be thanked of his grace,
     Make their fiftieth anniversary and walk alone.’

References

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