mugger

¹

[ muhg-er ]

noun

1. a person who mugs, especially one who assaults a person in order to rob them.

mugger

²

or mug·gar, mug·gur

[ muhg-er ]

noun

1. a broad-snouted crocodile, Crocodylus palustris, of southern Asia, that grows to a length of about 16 feet (4.88 meters).

mugger

¹

/ ˈmʌɡə /

noun

1. a large freshwater crocodile, Crocodylus niloticus, inhabiting marshes and pools of India and Ceylon Also calledmarsh crocodile

mugger

²

/ ˈmʌɡə /

noun

1. informal.
   a person who commits robbery with violence, esp in the street
2. a person who overacts

Word History and Origins

Origin of mugger¹

An Americanism dating back to 1860–65; mug + -er ¹

Origin of mugger²

First recorded in 1835–45, mugger is from the Hindi word magar

Word History and Origins

Origin of mugger¹

C19: from Hindi magar

Example Sentences

“I want to hate these muggers and murderers. They should be forced to suffer, and, when they kill, they should be executed for their crimes,” the advertisement stated.

From BBC

He drew his gun and made the mugger hand over the pocket knife, which he threw in the gutter.

From BBC

First, he maneuvered his food truck to cut off the mugger; then he jumped out to confront the man.

From Los Angeles Times

He said that he was a friend of Mrs. Elliott’s daughter Kari McCabe, and that muggers had stolen his money and a term paper he had written about the criminal justice system.

From New York Times

Even the alleys looked inviting, with adult-sized nutcrackers casually loitering there instead of the usual muggers.

From Salon

Related Words

• assailant
• thief
• thug