mosstrooper

American  

[maws-troo-per, mos-] / ˈmɔsˌtru pər, ˈmɒs- /

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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mosstrooper British  

/ ˈmɒsˌtruːpə /

noun

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

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Other Word Forms

• mosstroopery noun
• mosstrooping noun

Etymology

Origin of mosstrooper

First recorded in 1645–55; moss + trooper

Example Sentences

"I suspect there is some very weary cattle by the road," said I. "If I had known you were such a mosstrooper you should have tasted longer of the Bass," says he.

From David Balfour, Second Part Being Memoirs Of His Adventures At Home And Abroad, The Second Part: In Which Are Set Forth His Misfortunes Anent The Appin Murder; His Troubles With Lord Advocate Grant; Captivity On The Bass Rock; Journey Into Holland And France; And Singular Relations With James More Drummond Or Macgregor, A Son Of The Notorious Rob Roy, And His Daughter Catriona by Stevenson, Robert Louis