Peddler
//ˈpɛdlə// noun
noun ·Uncommon ·College level
Definitions
Noun
- 1 An itinerant seller of small goods.
- 2 someone who travels about selling their wares (as on the streets or at carnivals) wordnet
- 3 A drug dealer.
"Here's a cure for all your troubles Here's an end to all distress It's the old dope peddler With his powdered happiness"
- 4 an unlicensed dealer in illegal drugs wordnet
- 5 A fake-news disseminator; A conspiracy-theory propagator. figuratively
Example
More examples"The peddler carried a big bundle on his back."
Etymology
From Middle English pedlere, pedlare, pedeler, alteration of Middle English peddere (“hawker, peddler”), of uncertain origin. Compare Medieval Latin pedārius, from Latin pedāre (“to furnish with feet; prop up”).
Related phrases
More for "peddler"
Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.