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Oliver Twist

American  

noun

  1. a novel (1838) by Dickens.


Oliver Twist Cultural  
  1. (1838) A novel by Charles Dickens; the title character is an orphan boy. In one famous scene, Oliver is severely punished for asking for more gruel, or porridge (“Please, sir, I want some more”). Oliver later becomes a pickpocket in a gang of young thieves led by Fagin. Violent in plot, the book exposes the inadequacies of British public institutions for dealing with the poverty of children like Oliver.


Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

This ruling looks more like a reflection of the observation of Dickens’ Mr. Bumble in Oliver Twist: “The law is a ass.”

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 11, 2025

When confronted with a bowl of Old Fashioned Quaker Oats or its ilk, all I could think of was Oliver Twist sadly begging for more.

From Seattle Times ● Mar. 12, 2022

“Deep history on & in this site forever because Oliver Twist was born here.”

From New York Times ● Dec. 23, 2021

My dad was very musical, he was a trained actor, very theatrical, and would always take me to theatre auditions and teach me Oliver Twist songs.

From BBC ● Jan. 3, 2021

This is when they tried to make us feel like the bastards who ran the workhouse in Oliver Twist.

From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover

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