Dictionary

crossman en · NOUN

Etymology

From cross + -man; perhaps related to on the cross (“dishonestly”).

Meanings

1. (obsolete, slang) A thief, forger, or other criminal.
   • There is a house in Cherry street, not far from Catherine Market […]. A little to the north of its door stands an old-time tree; and for many a year it has been known to the “crossmen” and “knucks” of the town as “Jack Circle's watering place” and “fence.” 1848, Ned Buntline, The Mysteries and Miseries of New York: A Story of Real Life, Part 1, New York: Benford & Co., page 33:

Forms