poacher

¹ American  

[poh-cher] / ˈpoʊ tʃər /

noun

1. a person who trespasses on private property, especially to catch fish or game illegally.

2. Also called sea-poacher.  any of several slender, marine fishes of the family Agonidae, found chiefly in deeper waters of the North Pacific, having the body covered with bony plates.

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poacher ² American  

[poh-cher] / ˈpoʊ tʃər /

noun

1. a pan having a tight-fitting lid and metal cups for steaming or poaching poach poaching eggs.

2. any dish or pan used for poaching poach poaching food, especially a baking dish for poaching poach poaching fish.

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poacher ¹ British  

/ ˈpəʊtʃə /

noun

1. a person who illegally hunts game, fish, etc, on someone else's property

2. someone whose occupation or behaviour is the opposite of what it previously was, such as a burglar who now advises on home security

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poacher ² British  

/ ˈpəʊtʃə /

noun

1. a metal pan with individual cups for poaching eggs

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Etymology

Origin of poacher¹

First recorded in 1660–70; poach ² + -er ¹

Origin of poacher²

First recorded in 1860–65; poach ¹ + -er ¹

Example Sentences

Elephants are protected under Sri Lankan law and poachers can face the death penalty for killing one.

From Barron's

It was a glimpse of the poacher's instincts Wissa will bring to Newcastle.

From BBC

Eyebrows were raised about the rhino horn trade proposals mainly because Namibia pioneered the practice of cutting the horns off rhinos in 1989 so they no longer have value for poachers.

From BBC

By 2011, the West African black rhino was officially declared extinct, thanks to poachers who mercilessly killed them for their horns—which people then use for decorative carvings and grind into powder for medicines.

From Literature

But Erica Ford, as a cross-dressing game poacher and archer-in-disguise named Ralph, provides the kind of character and performance that delivers new blood and enlivens an old story.

From The Wall Street Journal