cutpurse

[ kuht-purs ]

noun

1. Older Use. a pickpocket.
2. (formerly) a person who steals by cutting purses from the belt.

cutpurse

/ ˈkʌtˌpɜːs /

noun

1. an archaic word for pickpocket

Word History and Origins

Origin of cutpurse¹

First recorded in 1325–75, cutpurse is from the Middle English word cutte-purs. See cut, purse

Example Sentences

Sweet potatoes, fruit Jello, and roast pork — not turkey — would be served to all the inmates, from the lowliest cutpurse to what amounted to the celebrity wing, and its residents:

From Los Angeles Times

Now, Eugene wishes to gain a final rest from the cycle, to be released from the emotional burden he has carried since his days as a cutpurse in Moorish Spain.

From Los Angeles Times

I held a desperate hope that I could cutpurse that much in time.

From Literature

At the bridge’s center span, the severed hands of thieves and cutpurses hung like strings of onions from iron stanchions along the roadway.

From Literature

She had seen cutpurses aplenty in the streets of the Free Cities, during the years she'd spent with her brother, running from the Usurper's hired knives.

From Literature

Related Words

• thief