headsman

== English == === Etymology === From Middle English heddysman, equivalent to head +‎ -s- +‎ -man. Cognate with Scots hedisman, heidisman (“head man; chief; commander”). Compare also Danish høvedsmand (“captain”), Swedish hövitsman (“captain”), Icelandic höfuðsmaður (“captain”), German Hauptmann (“captain”). === Pronunciation === === Noun === headsman (plural headsmen) (obsolete or Scotland) A chief person; a head man An executioner whose method of dispatching the condemned is decapitation. (mining, historical) A labourer in a colliery who transports the coal from the workings to the horseway, and who is oftentimes assisted by a younger worker called a foal. (nautical) One in command of a whaling vessel. ==== Synonyms ==== (one who executes via decapitation): beheader, decapitator ==== Translations ====