Definition

1. Noun:
   • A mechanical device for feeding fuel to a furnace: A "stoker" is a machine that automatically supplies coal or other solid fuel to a furnace, especially on a ship or locomotive.
   • A laborer who tends fires: A "stoker" is a person whose job is to tend a furnace or boiler, adding fuel and managing the fire, particularly on coal-powered trains or steamships.
   • A proper name: "Stoker" is the surname of Bram Stoker (1847-1912), the Irish author famous for writing the horror novel Dracula.

Examples of Usage

• Noun (Mechanical Device):

  • The old steamship was equipped with an automatic stoker.
  • Replacing the manual coal feeding with a mechanical stoker improved efficiency.

• Noun (Laborer):

  • The stoker worked tirelessly in the ship's engine room, shoveling coal into the furnace.
  • In the age of steam, a stoker's job was physically demanding and very hot.

• Noun (Proper Name):

  • Bram Stoker's novel introduced the character of Count Dracula.

Advanced Usage

• "Fireman" as a synonym: In historical contexts, especially on railways, a "stoker" was often called a fireman. This term refers specifically to the person, not the device.
  • The locomotive's fireman (or stoker) ensured the boiler had enough steam pressure.

Variants and Related Words

• Stoke (verb): To add fuel to and tend a fire or furnace.
  • He stoked the fire to keep the house warm.

Synonyms

• Fireman (for the laborer).
• Boilerman (for the laborer).
• Feeder or automatic feeder (for the mechanical device).

Related Phrases (Phrasal Verbs)

• Stoke up: To add fuel to a fire to make it burn more strongly; figuratively, to encourage or intensify a feeling or activity.
  • We need to stoke up the furnace before the night shift.
  • His speech stoked up nationalist sentiments.

Related Idioms

• Stoke the fires/flames of (something): To deliberately intensify a strong emotion, conflict, or situation.
  • The politician's remarks stoked the fires of division within the community.

Noun

1. a mechanical device for stoking a furnace
2. a laborer who tends fires (as on a coal-fired train or steamship)
3. Irish writer of the horror novel about Dracula (1847-1912)