month man

noun

A temporary agricultural worker hired for a specific, usually short-term duration, typically exactly one month; commonly brought on during peak seasons, such as planting or harvesting and often paid higher wages than full-time or year-round farmhands.

Meanings

nounmonth man (plural month men)

plural month men · alternative months man · alternative month's man

  1. historicalagricultureA temporary agricultural worker hired for a specific, usually short-term duration, typically exactly one month; commonly brought on during peak seasons, such as planting or harvesting and often paid higher wages than full-time or year-round farmhands.
    1 more example

    If a month hand receives the same pay the year around, the owner will fee] that he is getting too much in winter ; and in harvest, when day hands are getting big wages, the month man will feel that he is working for nothing. By varying the pay, the year's total may be the same, but both farmer and laborer will be better satisfied.

    1913, G.F. Warden, Farm Management, page 342

Origin

First appearing in written records in the late 1700s, the term was primarily used in the United Kingdom and rural America.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

month man. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/month%20man

MLA

“month man.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/month%20man. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “month man,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/month%20man.

Source: month man on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.