Definition

Noun: 1. The occupation or trade of a plumber: This refers to the professional work involving the installation, maintenance, and repair of systems used for potable (drinkable) water, sewage, and drainage in buildings. 2. A plumber's workshop (archaic): Historically, this could also refer to the place where a plumber works, though this meaning is now rare.

Usage Examples

• Noun (Occupation):
  • He trained for five years to master the craft of plumbery.
  • Modern plumbery requires knowledge of both traditional piping and new technologies.

Advanced Usage

• The term is somewhat formal and technical. In everyday conversation, "plumbing trade" or simply "plumbing" is more common.
• It can be used in historical contexts to describe the trade as it was practiced in earlier centuries.

Variants and Related Words

• Plumber (n): A person who installs and repairs piping systems.
• Plumbing (n): The system of pipes, tanks, and fixtures; also commonly used to refer to the trade itself (more frequent than "plumbery").
• Plumb (v): To test or make something vertical; or to install plumbing.

Synonyms

• Plumbing trade
• Pipefitting (specifically involves installing and maintaining piping systems)

Notes on Meaning

• The core meaning focuses on the occupation. The archaic meaning of a "workshop" is largely obsolete.
• Do not confuse with "plumery," which is a place where plumes (feathers) are prepared.

Noun

1. the occupation of a plumber (installing and repairing pipes and fixtures for water or gas or sewage in a building)