appraiser

Etymology

It is formed from English appraise + -er,^[2][3][4] an agent noun from the verb appraise.^[3] The OED notes the variant appraisor, with the suffix -or substituted.^[2]

Earliest recorded meaning

A person who sets a money value on something, especially one appointed to value property: 1424, in the London letter-books.^[2] Etymonline dates "one who estimates worth" to the early 15th century,^[3] while the 1989 edition of the OED had no record before 1529.^[5]

Semantic evolution

The 1989 edition of the OED defined the main sense as a person appointed and sworn to value property,^[5] and Johnson (1755) defined an appraiser as a person appointed to set a price on things to be sold.^[4] From 1688 the word was also used of someone who judges the quality or worth of a thing or person in general.^[2] From 1915 it was used of someone who evaluates how well another is doing their job, later especially a manager who carries out a formal appraisal of an employee.^[2] Merriam-Webster lists appraisers of real estate for taxes or sale, of imported goods for customs duties, of damaged goods for salvage and of bankrupt firms' assets.^[6]

Timeline

• 1424 – a person who sets a money value on something, especially property.^[2]
• 1688 – a person who judges the quality or worth of something or someone.^[2]
• 1915 – a person who evaluates another's performance at work.^[2]

Meanings

Noun

1. A person who sets a money value on things, especially one appointed or licensed to value real estate, jewellery, goods or other property: The insurer sent an appraiser to look at the damaged car.^[6][7][2]
2. A person who judges the quality or worth of something or someone.^[2][6]
3. A person, especially a manager, who carries out a formal appraisal of an employee's work.^[2]

Related words

• appraise
• appraisal
• price
• praise
• apprise

References

1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
3. ^ a b c Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
4. ^ a b Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
5. ^ a b Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press
6. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
7. ^ Garner, Bryan A., ed. (2004), Black's Law Dictionary, 8th ed., St. Paul, Minn.: Thomson West