upholster

upholster · verb¹

1. Middle English · derived fromupholder“dealer in small goods”
2. Middle English · inherited fromupholdester
3. English todayupholster

Back-formation from upholsterer (“tradesman who finishes furniture”), from Middle English upholdester, variant of Middle English upholder (“dealer in small goods”), from upholden (“to repair, uphold”); equivalent to uphold + -ster. Sense development as well as form may have been influenced by conflation with unrelated bolster.

upholster · noun²

1. Middle English · inherited fromupholdester
2. English todayupholster

From Middle English upholdester, upholster; equivalent to uphold + -ster.

Words from the same roots