marchant

plural marchants

1. obsoleteObsolete form of merchant.

   Faith Gentlemen now I play a marchants part, And venture madly on a deſperate Mart.

   c. 1590–1592 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Taming of the Shrew”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i], page 217, column 2

   5 more examples

   His wife (having invented a present shift) laughed on her husband, saying: What marchant I pray you have you brought home hither, to fetch away my tub for five pence, for which I poore woman that sit all day alone in my house have beene proffered so often seaven: […]

   1566, William Adlington, The Golden Asse

   By Jove, master marchant, by sea or by land Would get but smale argent if I did not stand His very good master, I may say to you, When he hazards in hope what hap will insue.

   1575, “Apius and Virginia”, in Isaac Reed, Octavius Gilchrist, editors, A Select Collection of Old Plays, London: Septimus Prowett, published 1826, page 353

   Now by the chaunge of a vizard one man might play the king and the carter, the old nurse and the yong damsell, the marchant and the souldier or any other part he listed very conveniently.

   1589, George Puttenham, The Arte of English Poesie, Book I, Chapter 14

   ‘What thinke you of this English, tel me I pray you.’ ‘It is a language that wyl do you good in England but passe Dover, it is woorth nothing.’ ‘Is it not used then in other countreyes?’ ‘No sir, with whom wyl you that they speake?’ ‘With English marchants.’ ‘English marchantes, when they are out of England, it liketh hem not, and they doo not speake it.

   1591, John Florio, Second Frutes to be gathered of twelve trees, of diverse but delightful tastes to the tongues of Italian and English

   In an other corner, Mistris Minx, a marchants wife, that will eate no cherries, forsooth, but when they are at twentie shillings a pound, that lookes as simperingly as if she were besmeard, and iets it as gingerly as if she were dancing the canaries, […]

   1592, Thomas Nash[e], Pierce Penilesse His Supplication to the Deuill. […], London: […] [John Charlewood for] Richard Ihones, […], →OCLC

plural Marchants

1. A surname.