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mosstrooper

[maws-troo-per, mos-]
See more synonyms for mosstrooper on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a marauder who operated in the mosses, or bogs, of the border between England and Scotland in the 17th century.
  2. any marauder.
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Origin of mosstrooper

First recorded in 1645–55; moss + trooper
Related formsmoss·troop·er·y, nounmoss·troop·ing, noun, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for mosstrooper

Historical Examples

  • Yes; and the mosstrooper now lies in the Donjon with iron on wrist and ankle.

    The Mosstrooper

    Robert Scott Fittis

  • “If I had known you were such a mosstrooper you should have tasted longer of the Bass,” says he.

    Catriona

    Robert Louis Stevenson

  • “Ay; I had almost forgotten,” returned Sir James, as he went in search of the mosstrooper.

    The Mosstrooper

    Robert Scott Fittis

  • "If I had known you were such a mosstrooper you should have tasted longer of the Bass," says he.

    David Balfour, Second Part

    Robert Louis Stevenson

British Dictionary definitions for mosstrooper

mosstrooper

noun
  1. a raider in the border country of England and Scotland in the mid-17th century
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Word Origin

C17 moss, in northern English dialect sense: bog
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012