peddler

noun

ped·​dler ˈped-lər 

variants or less commonly pedlar

plural peddlers also pedlars

: someone who peddles: such as

a

: someone who offers merchandise (such as fresh produce) for sale along the street or from door to door

b

: someone who deals in or promotes something intangible (such as a personal asset or an idea)

influence peddlers

commonly confused with pedaler

Synonyms

• hawker
• huckster

Examples of peddler in a Sentence

the peddler on the street corner selling baseball caps

Recent Examples on the Web

Hans, who doesn’t turn out to be such a great guy, is contrasted with Kristoff (Nicholas Edwards), a hard-working ice peddler, and his reindeer Sven. —John Wenzel, The Denver Post, 20 June 2024

The panicked response continues a trend set off by deepfake footage of Biden supposedly activating the draft, which has been regularly shared by right-wing misinformation peddlers since February 2023. —Miles Klee, Rolling Stone, 18 June 2024

The Epoch Times rose to prominence in recent years as a fierce backer of Trump due to his anti-China rhetoric, and as a peddler of conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and the 2020 election. —Jude Joffe-Block, NPR, 15 June 2024

Adams also said his administration is in the process of figuring out behind the scenes how much law enforcement personnel will need to fan out across the city to put the kibosh on illicit pot peddlers. —Chris Sommerfeldt, New York Daily News, 30 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above