cutpurse en · NOUN
Pronunciation
Etymology
From Middle English cutte-purs; equivalent to cut + purse: originally, purses were worn by a strap at the girdle, which the thief would cut.
Meanings
-
A thief who steals from others' purses or pockets in public.
The Gipsie snap & Pedro are none of Toms Comradoes, yͤ punck I skorne, & yͤ cutpurse sworn & yͤ roring boyes brauadoes
c. 1620, anonymous, “Tom o’ Bedlam’s Song” in Giles Earle his Booke (British Museum, Additional MSS. 24, 665)A cutpurse of the empire and the rule
c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene iv]:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| cutpurses | Number=Plur | lexicographic | |
| cut-purse | alternative | lexicographic |
Synonyms
Translations (23)
pl rzezimieszek (a thief who steals from others' purses) · nl zakkenroller (a thief who steals from others' purses) · nl beurzensnijder (a thief who steals from others' purses) · az cibəgirən (a thief who steals from others' purses) · pl doliniarz (a thief who steals from others' purses) · la sacculārius (a thief who steals from others' purses) · fi laukkuvaras (a thief who steals from others' purses) · fr voleur à la tire (a thief who steals from others' purses) · ru карма́нник (a thief who steals from others' purses) · la manticulātor (a thief who steals from others' purses) · be кішэ́ннік (a thief who steals from others' purses) · pl złodziej kieszonkowy (a thief who steals from others' purses) · it tagliaborse (a thief who steals from others' purses) · grc βαλλαντιοτόμος (a thief who steals from others' purses) · fi taskuvaras (a thief who steals from others' purses) · az cibgir (a thief who steals from others' purses) · it borsaiolo (a thief who steals from others' purses) · mk ќесеџија (a thief who steals from others' purses) · pl kieszonkowiec (a thief who steals from others' purses) · ru карма́нный вор (a thief who steals from others' purses) · el πορτοφολάς (a thief who steals from others' purses) · de Taschendieb (a thief who steals from others' purses) · fr coupe-bourse (a thief who steals from others' purses)