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But·ler 1 (bŭtlər), Samuel 1612-1680.
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English poet remembered primarily for his three-part work Hudibras (1663-1678), a venomous mock-heroic satire on the Puritans.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
But·ler 2 (bŭtlər), Samuel 1835-1902.
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British writer best known for Erewhon (1872), a utopian fantasy, and The Way of All Flesh (1903), a semiautobiographical novel satirizing family life in mid-Victorian England.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
Butler, Nicholas Murray 1862-1947.
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American educator and president of Columbia University (1902-1945) who advocated peace through education. He shared the 1931 Nobel Peace Prize.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
But·ler (bŭtlər), Benjamin Franklin 1818-1893.
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American army officer and politician. His harsh rule as military governor of New Orleans (May-December 1862) led to charges of corruption and Butler's removal. He later opened the impeachment proceedings against President Andrew Johnson (1868).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
but·ler (bŭtlər)
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n.
The head servant in a household who is usually in charge of food service, the care of silverware, and the deportment of the other servants.

[Middle English, from Old French bouteillier, bottle bearer, from bouteille, botele, bottle; see BOTTLE.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.