linkman vs attender

linkman and attender both are nouns.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
linkman	Yes	No	No	No
attender	Yes	No	No	No

As nouns, attender is a hypernym of linkman; that is, attender is a word with a broader meaning than linkman:

linkman: (formerly) an attendant hired to carry a torch for pedestrians in dark streets
attender: someone who waits on or tends to or attends to the needs of another

Other hypernyms of linkman include attendant, tender.

linkman (noun)	attender (noun)
(formerly) an attendant hired to carry a torch for pedestrians in dark streets	someone who waits on or tends to or attends to the needs of another
	a person who is present and participates in a meeting
	someone who listens attentively