What does "lackey" mean?
Lackey: An attending male servant; a footman; a servile follower. Like a Christian footboy or a gentleman's lackey. Shak. Lackey caterpillar (Zoöl.), the caterpillar, or larva, of any bombycid moth of the genus Clisiocampa; -- so called from its party- colored markings. The common European species (C. neustria) is striped with blue, yellow, and red, with a white line on the back. The American species (C. Americana and C. sylvatica) are commonly called tent caterpillars. See Tent caterpillar,under Tent. -- Lackey moth (Zoöl.), the moth which produces the lackey caterpillar.
Additional senses
- 2.To attend as a lackey; to wait upon. A thousand liveried angels lackey her. Milton.
- 3.To act or serve as lackey; to pay servile attendance.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
- Canonical URL: https://worddirectanswers.com/answers/what-does-lackey-mean
- Steward: Jason Burns
- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00