Usage patterns 〈 人ひと 〉 を 使し 用よう 人にん として 雇やと う to hire someone as a servant
The aristocrat hired many people as servants.
使し 用よう 人にん を 解かい 雇こ する to dismiss a servant
The master of the estate dismissed the rude servant.
使し 用よう 人にん に 〈 事こと 〉 を 命めい じる to order a servant to do something
The lady ordered the servant to prepare dinner.
Kanji 使 use, send on a mission, order 用 utilize, business, service Related words· 6 従業員 is the general, business-register term for any company employee, while 使用人 traditionally denotes personal or domestic servants.
召使い is an older, more literary word for a personal servant, closely overlapping with 使用人 but sounding even more feudal.
メイド is a modern loanword specifically for a maid, whereas 使用人 is a broader, more traditional term covering any household staff.
使用人 is the neutral modern word for an employee or servant, while しもべ carries an old-fashioned, literary flavor.
Show 2 more Show fewer 使用人 is the neutral general word for an employee or servant, while 抱え emphasizes a personally kept or dependent employee (like a private chauffeur or lawyer).
使用人 is a general term for any household servant or employee, while 執事 specifically denotes a senior steward or butler with managerial duties.
Opposites 雇い主 is the person who hires and pays someone, the direct opposite role to 使用人 , the person who is employed.
主人 as 'employer/master' is opposed to 使用人 , meaning 'servant' or 'employee' who serves under the 主人 .
Counted with 使用人 is counted with 人 , the standard counter for people.
名 is used to count 使用人 in more formal or polite contexts, such as when listing household staff.
Etymology Compound of 使用 (use, employ) and 人 (person). The word literally means 'a person who is employed', and has been used since at least the Edo period to refer to domestic servants.
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