company man
8
7.2
- noun
- /ˈkʌmpəni mæn/
- US
:
hombre de la empresa
- As a company man, he always prioritized his employer's interests over those of his colleagues.
- a good company man
- still a company man
- became a company man
So for some people, like I'm a just be a company man and do what's best for the team.
- So for some people, like I'm a just be a company man and do what's best for the team.
Examples
-
Route 128 operated on the "company man" model, and to leave was to show disloyalty, often resulting in ostracism.
Blog text (6) -
The company man's demeanor was just right, serious but not somber, friendly but not familiar.
Fiction book (1995) -
I never was cut out to be much of a company man.
Fiction book (2001) -
"To be honest, you never were a very good company man.
Fiction book (2001) -
"I gave being a company man my best shot.
Fiction book (2002) -
You know, I never thought I'd say this, but I'm a company man.
-
When'd you become a company man?
-
I was a company man with a modestly valuable talent for solving administrative problems.
Fiction book (1997) -
A real company man.
Fiction book (1993) -
The ultimate company man.
Fiction book (1997)
Synonyms
1
8.0
A Japanese office worker, usually male, who works long hours and stays loyal to the company
1
7.9
A man who follows his company's rules and gives up his own ideas
A person who is more loyal to their company than to their coworkers
Antonyms
How Loyal
Surface Forms
Morphology
A B1 learner who knows 'company' and 'man' can readily infer a literal sense 'a man who works for a company', so part of the meaning is compositional. However, the evaluative/pejorative nuance of primary loyalty to the employer (possibly at the expense of fellow workers) is an additional, culturally loaded sense that is not fully predictable from the constituents, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
The phrase company man may come from times when a worker's life and job were tied to one company, so one man often acted as the firm's supporter. That's why company man now means someone who puts the company first and is loyal to their employer, even if it hurts co-workers.