sais

Definition

A groom, or servant with responsibility for the horses.

Etymology

From Hindi (Hindustani), from Arabic سَائِس (sāʔis, “stableman, groom”), from سَاس (sās, “to tend a horse”).

Example Sentences

• "Not one of them [horse dealers] will venture a horse, he is about to sell, in the stables of the intended purchaser, unless attended by one of his own syces, or grooms, who both knows and is known by the animal. If the horse be very old, or naturally dull, the syce takes care to ply him with spices and other stimulants; and if vicious, opium, and other anodynes are given; so that the horse is absolutely in a state of disguise."
• "4th Troop 1st Brigade—3 rank and file, 1 syce, 17 horses, killed; […]"
• "Then all trace of him was lost, until a sais met me on Simla Mall with this extraordinary note:— […]"