Stool Once Meant Any Seat, Including a Throne
A stool is a backless seat. The word once covered every kind of chair and survives in some odd places.
A stool is a seat without a back or arms. It once meant any seat at all, including a throne — and it left two curious survivals. The *groom of the stool* was a senior royal official who attended the monarch's close stool, or portable toilet, and the position carried enormous influence because of the private access it gave. That toilet sense is also why *stool* is the medical word for faeces. *Stool pigeon* means an informer, from decoy birds tied to a stool.
- A backless seat. *A bar stool.*
- Faeces (medical). *A stool sample.*
- Stool pigeon — an informer. *A stool pigeon.*
- Close stool — a portable toilet. *The close stool.*
- Old English — *stol*, a seat. *The source.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | stool | A stool. |
| Plural | stools | Stools. |
| Compound | footstool | A footstool. |
| Compound | stool pigeon | A stool pigeon. |
| Old English | stol | A seat. |
- She sat on a bar stool.Furniture.
- The doctor requested a stool sample.Medical.
- He was a stool pigeon for the police.Informer.
Where the odd senses come from
- Stol meant any seat, including a throne
- Close stool — a chair with a chamber pot beneath
- Groom of the Stool — the courtier who attended it, a powerful post
- Medical stool — from that toilet sense
- Stool pigeon — a decoy bird tied to a small stool
Old English *stol*, a seat or throne, of Germanic origin, related to German *Stuhl*.
Why does stool mean faeces?
From the close stool, a chair with a chamber pot beneath it. The medical sense comes directly from that furniture.
What was the Groom of the Stool?
A senior royal servant who attended the monarch's close stool. The private access made it one of the most influential posts at court.