factotum
Pluralfactotums
- 1A person employed or relied on to do all kinds of work and tasks, rather than one particular job.
The nonprofit's only factotum handled payroll, fixed the copier, and updated the website, all on a part-time salary.
The governor's factotums were sent out to calm nervous donors after his remarks on taxes caused an uproar.
UsagePlural factotums (not
incorrect: factota).Similarhandyman, dogsbody, gofer
Note
The word is not tied to old-fashioned household service. Jon Schwarz in The Intercept (2021) writes of Biden’s and Bush’s factotums walking their statements back.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 1 fact
- Jon Schwarz wrote in The Intercept in 2021 about Biden’s and Bush’s factotums walking their statements back. en.wiktionary.org
Less common meaning
- 2In early printing, a large ornamental printing block with a central space into which any letter could be set, used to mark the start of a chapter.
Use it in a sentence
Write your own sentence with factotum, and AI will tell you whether it fits and which meaning you used.
Origin
A shortened form of "domine fac totum" or "dominus fac totum" ("absolute ruler; head servant"). This comes from the Medieval Latin phrase "domine fac tōtum" ("O Lord, do everything"), which also appeared with the nominative "dominus" in place of the vocative "domine."
Checked 30 Oct 2026 · 4 facts
- Factotum is a shortened form of domine fac totum or dominus fac totum. en.wiktionary.org
- The longer expressions meant an absolute ruler or head servant. en.wiktionary.org
- The source is Medieval Latin domine fac tōtum, meaning O Lord, do everything. en.wiktionary.org
- The expression also used nominative dominus instead of vocative domine. en.wiktionary.org