Houseboy, a term not in widespread use today due to a pejorative connotation, is a male servant who performs domestic or personal chores, as in:

Houseboy, an American slang term that originated in WWII describing a native boy who helped a soldier preform basic responsibilites like cleaning, laundry, ironing, shoe-shining, running errands, and the like. However, unlike the American "bootleboy" or British "batman", a houseboy was not employed by an officer or noncommissioned officer but by the entry-level soldier or private as a means to reduce a very heavy workload or to cut corners on a large amount of work. The employment was at first condoned but later and especially during the Korean War soldiers who were caught employing a houseboy faced stiff penalties because a lot of them became expert thieves and could be either bribed for information or have their relatives kidnapped or killed for helping Americans.

Houseboy, a Commonwealth term for a male housecleaner. This was usually a man of colour who worker for an English family living in a Commonwealth country.

The houseboy became a plot device or stock character in literature and film.

See also

• Military slang
• domestic service
• ethnic stereotypes in popular culture