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For I shall sutler be / Unto the camp, and profits will accrue, Pistol declares in Shakespeare's Henry V. In 1599, the year the play was first performed, "sutler" was quite new to English. It was adapted from the Dutch word soeteler, which meant about the same thing as our modern term. Even then, sutlers weren't usually the most popular fellows in a military camp, as a further look at the word's history reveals. The Dutch adopted "soeteler" from a Low German word meaning "sloppy worker," which itself traces to an even older verb that meant "to do sloppy work" or "to dirty." Perhaps the snide designation was inspired by the fact that the traditional sutler followed troops and sold them supplies at hugely inflated prices.
Examples of sutler in a Sentence
Baltimore Sun, 23 June 2023
Facing mounting gambling debts, the younger Monroe sold Thompson to John Culbertson, a sutler who moved to Fort Snelling in 1827 to sell goods to soldiers and brought Thompson with him.
—Curt Brown, Star Tribune, 17 July 2021
The event brings re-enactors setting up military and civilian camps that include soldiers, sutlers, musicians and more.
—Phil Marty, chicagotribune.com, 25 Apr. 2018
Sutlers, the roving merchants of that time will sell period articles.
—Joan Rusek, cleveland.com, 15 May 2017
Dictionary Entries Near sutler
Cite this Entry
“Sutler.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sutler. Accessed 2 Dec. 2024.
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