A Civil Servant Serves the Public, Not a Household
A servant is someone employed to serve. The word has largely left domestic use in English and survives in public and legal terms.
A servant is someone employed to serve another. Domestic service has mostly gone and so has the word for it; what survives are the institutional uses. A *civil servant* serves the state, a *public servant* serves the public, and in employment law *servant* is the old term for an employee whose employer answers for their acts.
- A domestic employee (historical). *A household of servants.*
- A public official. *A senior civil servant.*
- Someone devoted to a cause. *A servant of the people.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | servant | A loyal servant. |
| Plural | servants | Civil servants. |
| Verb | serve | Serve the public. |
| Noun | service | Public service. |
| Related | servitude | Indentured servitude. |
How it is used in a sentence
- Civil servants advise ministers.Permanent officials, politically neutral in Britain.
- She spent forty years as a public servant.A description of a career.
- The doctrine holds a master liable for a servant's acts.Old legal phrasing for employer and employee.
Servant words
- Civil servant — a permanent government official
- Public servant — anyone serving the public, including teachers and nurses
- Butler and housekeeper — the senior domestic roles
- Indentured servant — bound by contract for a fixed term
- Vassal — bound by feudal obligation, not employment
From Old French *servant*, serving, from Latin *servire*, to serve, from *servus*, a slave. English politeness kept the word long after the relationship changed.
Civil servant or public servant?
Civil servants work in central government departments. Public servant is broader and covers the whole public sector.
Why is servant a legal term?
Because the old law of master and servant governs when an employer is responsible for an employee's actions. Modern statutes use employer and employee.