housebreaker
[hous-brey-ker]
noun
a person who breaks into and enters a house with a felonious intent.
British.
- a worker or wrecking company that demolishes houses and buildings, as to make room for new construction.
- a person who buys doors, paneled walls, etc., from standing houses, to sell as antiques; a person who dismantles a house of its valuable parts before it is torn down.
Origin of housebreaker
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Related Words for housebreaker
raider, burglar, looter, pickpocket, thief, bandit, crook, swindler, thug, marauder, pirate, mugger, shoplifter, rustler, sniper, criminal, robber, pilferer, lurker, fenceExamples from the Web for housebreaker
Historical Examples of housebreaker
I feel enough like a sneakin' ragamuffin and housebreaker as 'tis.
Thankful's InheritanceJoseph C. Lincoln
I—I—I did n't mean that; I did n't say you were a housebreaker.
The Daltons, Volume II (of II)Charles James Lever
I do declare I felt azactly like a housebreaker;—and no soul to notice what you carries.
Rhoda Fleming, CompleteGeorge Meredith
First and foremost, Fagey, said the housebreaker, hows Bill?
Oliver Twist, Vol. II (of 3)Charles Dickens
They'll take you up for a housebreaker, if you're not quiet.