deerstalker

American  

[deer-staw-ker] / ˈdɪərˌstɔ kər /

noun

1. a person who stalks deer.

2. Also called fore-and-after.  a close-fitting woolen cap having a visor in front and in back, with earflaps usually raised and tied on top of the crown, worn as a hunting cap: especially associated with Sherlock Holmes.

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deerstalker British  

/ ˈdɪəˌstɔːkə /

noun

1. Also called: stalker.  a person who stalks deer, esp in order to shoot them

2. a hat, peaked in front and behind, with earflaps usually turned up and tied together on the top

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Other Word Forms

• deerstalking noun

Etymology

Origin of deerstalker

First recorded in 1810–20; deer + stalker ( def. )

Example Sentences

Woodstock’s nest is stolen, and Snoopy transforms into Sherlock Holmes, donning a deerstalker hat, blowing bubbles out of his meerschaum pipe and dusting for fingerprints in an effort to locate the culprit.

From New York Times

He takes off his tweed deerstalker hat and wipes his forehead.

From BBC

The game features a talking Pikachu that sounds indistinguishable from a 1930s-era Dashiell Hammett protagonist, equipped with a deerstalker hat, magnifying glass, and gruff sensibility.

From The Verge

Many wear Victorian dress, including Holmes’s preferred deerstalker cap and Inverness cape.

From New York Times

It was a huge hit, so the following year the mugs featured “Sherlock,” a skeleton in a deerstalker hat, a perfect symbol of death investigation drawn by former investigator Phillip Campbell.

From Washington Post