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DictionarymercerCloth dealer
noun

mercer

MUR-ser/mˈɝsɝ/

A dealer in textiles, especially fine cloth.

The mercer presents a length of fine cloth to the customer.

Textile dealer presents cloth to a customer.
Etymology
mercerOld Frenchshopkeeper, tradesman

The Old French word meant a shopkeeper or tradesman generally. English mercer likewise covered dealers in assorted wares, but developed the specialized sense of a dealer in textiles, especially silk.

In context

Unreal Medieval2:31
Agnes of St. Peters, a Canterbury Mercer's widow in the late 14th century, inherited her husband's shop and house directly. She continued the family business, traded textiles
Top 5 Bogus Claims About Medieval Women and Inheritance

More examples

  • The old directory listed several mercers.
  • She bought silk from a mercer.
  • The mercer's shop supplied velvet.

Forms

mercer · mercers

Similar words

draper
Another cloth-dealer term, especially in British usage.
merchant
Trades in goods beyond textiles.