carpetbag

[ kahr-pit-bag ]

noun

1. a bag for traveling, especially one made of carpeting.

verb (used without object)

, car·pet·bagged, car·pet·bag·ging.

1. to journey with little luggage.
2. to act as a carpetbagger.

carpetbag

/ ˈkɑːpɪtˌbæɡ /

noun

1. a travelling bag originally made of carpeting

Word History and Origins

Origin of carpetbag¹

First recorded in 1820–30; carpet + bag

Example Sentences

Never fear: The Tolkien literary estate seems to have an enchanted carpetbag, with wonders that emerge long after it has seemingly been emptied.

From Washington Post

He carried no trunk, only a carpetbag that was fraying apart at the seams.

From Literature

Whenever things grow desperate, Fogg pulls wads of cash from his carpetbag to pay captains to sail faster, to buy an elephant as jungle transport or, finally, to acquire and destroy an entire steamship.

From Washington Post

“This event on April 13, 1873 marked the end of carpetbag misrule in the South.”

From Washington Post

Some distance away, beyond the shade of the awning, a low white, with what I guessed to be all his possessions in a carpetbag, smoked tobacco.

From The New Yorker