drug peddler
1
7.4
- noun
- /drʌg ˈpɛdlər/
- NSFW
:
traficante de drogas
- Many residents are concerned about the presence of a drug peddler operating near the local park.
Examples
-
The police arrested a drug peddler who was selling illegal substances to high school students.
-
"It's the drug peddlers," he explained as they headed toward the showers.
Fiction book (1995) -
There are many teenagers who find themselves in the company of drug peddlers.
Blog text (33) -
Ty continued, "I see all those teenage drug peddlers walking around with that X on their caps."
Fiction book (1993) -
He became known as a drug peddler after being caught distributing narcotics in the neighborhood.
Synonyms
384
6.5
A person who buys and sells illegal goods like drugs and stolen items
246
4.8
A person who sells illegal drugs
21
8.4
A person who sells illegal drugs to other people
16
6.2
A person who illegally buys and sells large amounts of drugs
15
8.3
A person who sells or moves illegal drugs
4
8.1
A person who secretly sells illegal drugs
1
9.9
A person who sells illegal drugs, especially heroin
A person who sells illegal drugs on the street
A person who illegally sells drugs to others
How Powerful
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning is directly derivable from 'drug' (what is being sold) + 'peddler' (a seller/agent): the noun-noun composition clearly denotes a person who sells drugs. This compositional pattern is common and cross-linguistically transparent, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents will readily infer it refers to someone selling drugs (typically illegally).
Etymology
Drug peddler comes from the old word peddler, meaning a person who walked the streets selling small goods. With drug added, the picture is of someone quietly 'selling' illegal drugs in public, so today the term means a person who sells drugs 'without a license'.