wharf rat
- noun
- /wɔrf ræt/
- Offensive
:
rata de muelle (despectivo, informal, arcaico)
- The old man, once a notorious wharf rat, could tell stories of his days stealing from the ships.
Examples
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Local authorities are trying to clean up the area by addressing the issue of wharf rats who steal cargo.
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When the fishermen returned, the wharf rats would often scavenge for leftover fish.
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INT. WHARF RAT - NIGHT
Fiction book (1992)
Synonyms
2
7.6
A person who secretly steals things without using force
1
7.3
A person who steals small things without using force
Surface Forms
Morphology
The components 'wharf' (dock area) and 'rat' (used metaphorically for a despised or scavenging creature) together cue a person associated with docks and low social status, so a learner can infer a negative, scavenger-like human figure. However, the specific occupational/criminal nuance of living by the wharves and stealing from ships or warehouses is culturally detailed and not fully predictable from the words alone, making the expression only partly transparent.
Etymology
Wharf rat was used for people who lived on the wharf and stole from ships or warehouses, moving quietly among crates like a rat looking for food. That sneaky image is why 'wharf rat' came to mean 'a person who lives near wharves and survives by stealing from ships or warehouses'.