means A worker who fastens metal plates together with rivets, especially in shipbuilding, bridges, and the steel skeletons of skyscrapers.

from From "rivet," the metal bolt that's hammered through holes in two plates and then flattened on the far end so it can't slip back out. The word traces to Old French "river," meaning to fasten, clinch, or fix in place — possibly from a Germanic root tied to the idea of driving something fast. Add the agent suffix "-er" and you get the person who does the fastening. The trade lent its name to one of the 20th century's most famous figures: Rosie the Riveter, the wartime poster icon who put a face — and a flexed arm — to the women who streamed into factory work while the men were at war.