mudlark

[muhd-lahrk]

noun

1. Chiefly British.,  a person who gains a livelihood by searching for iron, coal, old ropes, etc., in mud or low tide.

2. Chiefly British Informal.,  a street urchin.

3. either of two black and white birds, Grallina cyanoleuca, of Australia, or G. bruijni, of New Guinea, that builds a large, mud nest.

verb (used without object)

1. to grub or play in mud.

mudlark

/ ˈmʌdˌlɑːk /

noun

1. slang,  a street urchin

2. (formerly) one who made a living by picking up odds and ends in the mud of tidal rivers

3. slang,  a racehorse that runs well on a wet or muddy course

Word History and Origins

Origin of mudlark¹

First recorded in 1790–1800; mud + lark ¹

Example Sentences

Lara Maiklem, author of “Mudlark: In Search of London’s Past Along the River Thames,” scours the shoreline for artifacts such as coins, tokens, buckles and potsherds, some dating to the period of Roman rule.

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There has surely never been a mudlark like Nadal, a man with the physical strength, mental strength and clay-court nous to succeed on that most demanding of surfaces, year after year.

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Tidal charts are imperative — the river is fast and deep — as is a permit to mudlark, authorized by the Port of London Authority.

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At her feet, pieces of clay tobacco pipes from the 16th and 17th century clinked as they washed against rocks, so common as to escape a mudlark’s interest.

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The name — mudlark — was first given to the Victorian-era poor who scrounged for items in the river to sell, pulling copper scraps, rope and other valuables from the shore.

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