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racketeer

[rak-i-teer]
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noun
  1. a person engaged in a racket.
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verb (used without object)
  1. to engage in a racket.
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Origin of racketeer

An Americanism dating back to 1925–30; racket1 + -eer
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

mobsterextortionistgangstercriminalsharkhood

Examples from the Web for racketeer

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • He was a raider, a racketeer, not a leader of purposeful men.

    Black Man's Burden

    Dallas McCord Reynolds

  • Her racketeer sweetie has a long arm, however, and Nita gets hers.

    Murder at Bridge

    Anne Austin

British Dictionary definitions for racketeer

racketeer

noun
  1. a person engaged in illegal enterprises for profit
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verb
  1. (intr) to operate a racket
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Derived Formsracketeering, noun
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

Word Origin and History for racketeer

1928 (noun and verb), from racket (n.1) + -eer. Related: Racketeering (1928).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper