noun
- Plural of copyboy; young male employees in a newspaper or publishing office who ran errands and delivered copy to editors and printers.
Usage: historical; chiefly North American; now largely obsolete due to modern office automation
Examples
- The copyboys rushed between the newsroom and the printing press with the latest stories.
- In the 1950s, many copyboys worked their way up to become reporters.
- The editor sent one of the copyboys to fetch coffee for the staff.
- Copyboys were essential to the daily operations of major newspapers before digital communication.
- Young men often started their journalism careers as copyboys in the newsroom.