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dealer

dealer

384 6.5
A person who buys and sells illegal goods like drugs and stolen items
  • noun
  • /ˈdiːlər/
  • NSFW
translation icon : traficante
  • Whether working as drug dealers or gangbangers, a violation of the code requires swift and immediate action.
  • drug dealer
  • dope dealer
  • arms dealer

Then me and my partner, our pot dealer was getting other drugs.

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Examples

  • Just consider it one less crack dealer we have to worry about.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • But we get a lot of ex-cons and drug dealers coming out here to lay low.

  • It's like going along to a drug dealer and going...

  • Then me and my partner, our pot dealer was getting other drugs.

  • Listen, I had to avoid, you know, crack dealers, gang members, the whole thing.

  • Law enforcement has far more experience with drug dealers than, say, terrorists.

    Academic text (1997)
  • A group of men, mostly drug dealers, hang out at an all-night coffee shop.

    Fiction book (1990)
  • The car had been confiscated from a drug dealer and was sold at auction for a pittance.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • The lucky man kissing her is her boyfriend, Markell, a small-time drug dealer and former gangsta.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • The undercover officer managed to infiltrate the gang's drug dealer and gather crucial evidence.

Synonyms

drug dealer
vsdealer
  • NSFW
246 4.8

A person who sells illegal drugs

buys and sells illegal goods more broadly, not only drugs to users
trafficker
vsdealer
  • NSFW
62 8.0

A person who illegally buys and sells goods or people

is more focused on illegal goods like drugs or stolen items specifically
fence
vsdealer
  • NSFW
52 9.8

A person who buys stolen goods to sell them to others

also covers illegal sales but includes drugs as well as stolen items
pusher
vsdealer
  • NSFW
21 8.4

A person who sells illegal drugs to other people

is broader, covering both drugs and other illicit items rather than only sales
drug trafficker
vsdealer
  • NSFW
16 6.2

A person who illegally buys and sells large amounts of drugs

focuses on buying and selling illegal goods including small-scale street sales
narco
vsdealer
  • NSFW
15 8.3

A person who sells or moves illegal drugs

covers buying and selling illegal items generally, not only organized drug trade
bootlegger
vsdealer
  • US
11 8.6

A person who makes and sells alcohol illegally, often during Prohibition

is about trading illegal goods generally, not specialized in alcohol
peddler
vsdealer
  • NSFW
4 8.1

A person who secretly sells illegal drugs

is a wider term for buying and selling various illegal or stolen goods
moonshiner
vsdealer
  • NSFW
3 9.8

A person who makes or sells alcohol secretly without government permission

is the broader activity of buying and selling illicit items, not only alcohol
black marketeer
vsdealer
  • NSFW
1 7.5

A person who secretly sells scarce or controlled goods for money

is narrower toward individual people who buy and sell illicit items
curbstoner
vsdealer
  • US
1 9.9

A person who sells cars without a dealer license, often illegally

refers to trading illegal or stolen goods more widely, not only cars
drug peddler
vsdealer
  • NSFW
1 7.4

A person who sells illegal drugs, often on the street

includes selling drugs but also buying and trading other illicit goods
junkman
vsdealer
  • NSFW
1 9.9

A person who sells illegal drugs, especially heroin

is a neutral description of buying and selling illegal goods generally
pill pusher
vsdealer
  • Offensive
9.7

A person who illegally sells drugs to others

covers general illegal buying and selling beyond promotion or unethical sales
street pharmacist
vsdealer
  • NSFW
9.8

A person who sells illegal drugs on the street

is the general role of buying and selling illegal goods beyond street sales

Compounds

246 4.8

A person who sells illegal drugs

18 1.4

A person or company that buys and sells cars

17 3.8

A person who buys and sells paintings or sculptures for clients

wheeler-dealer
  • Informal
3 8.0

A person who makes deals using clever or dishonest methods

broker-dealer
  • Specialized
3 6.1

A person or company that buys and sells stocks and bonds for clients and trades for itself

double-dealer
  • Offensive
1 8.5

A person who pretends to be a friend but secretly works against others

New Dealer
  • Archaic
1 7.4

A person who supported government programs to help people during the 1930s

A person or company that buys and sells computers

1 3.2

A person or shop that buys and sells rings and necklaces

1 9.9

A person who buys and sells people to force them to work without freedom

A person who handles money for other people, like taking and investing it

2.2

A business that buys and sells trucks

A person or shop that buys and sells stamps for collectors

How Involved

kingpin
  • Literature
33 7.0
organizer
  • US
149 2.8
dealer
  • NSFW
384 6.5
seller
257 1.0
customer
1.0

Surface Forms

dealer singular
dealers plural

Morphology

dealer = deal (transparent) = deal + er

The illegal 'dealer' sense is an agentive derivation from 'deal' (to trade or traffic in goods), so the formation is morphologically regular.

Etymology

Dealer comes from the verb deal meaning 'to trade' and the ending -er that means 'a person'. That's why a drug or stolen-goods dealer is simply someone who buys and sells illegal items.