guttersnipe

[ guht-er-snahyp ]

noun

1. a person belonging to or characteristic of the lowest social group in a city.
2. a street urchin.

guttersnipe

/ ˈɡʌtəˌsnaɪp /

noun

1. a child who spends most of his time in the streets, esp in a slum area
2. a person regarded as having the behaviour, morals, etc, of one brought up in squalor

Derived Forms

• ˈgutterˌsnipish, adjective

Other Words From

• gutter·snipish adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of guttersnipe¹

First recorded in 1855–60; gutter + snipe

Word History and Origins

Origin of guttersnipe¹

C19: originally a name applied to the common snipe (the bird), then to a person who gathered refuse from gutters in city streets

Example Sentences

In one way or the other, the guttersnipe must have his proper prominence.

From Project Gutenberg

The Humanitarian Hero had not come into fashion—nor yet the guttersnipe.

From Project Gutenberg

You wait—I shant—forget, you—squat-nosed—little—guttersnipe.

From Project Gutenberg

I'm a spiritual guttersnipe in love with unimaginable goddesses.

From Project Gutenberg

His studies of the London “guttersnipe” and the coster-girl rapidly made him famous.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• homeless person
• unhoused person