huckster

American  

[huhk-ster] / ˈhʌk stər /

noun

1. a retailer of small articles, especially a peddler of fruits and vegetables; hawker.

2. a person who employs showy methods to effect a sale, win votes, etc..

   the crass methods of political hucksters.

3. a cheaply mercenary person.

4. Informal.

   1. a persuasive and aggressive salesperson.

   2. a person who works in the advertising industry, especially one who prepares aggressive advertising for radio and television.

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verb (used with or without object)

1. to deal, as in small articles, or to make petty bargains.

   to huckster fresh corn; to huckster for a living.

2. to sell or promote in an aggressive and flashy manner.

huckster British  

/ ˈhʌkstə /

noun

1. a person who uses aggressive or questionable methods of selling

2. rare a person who sells small articles or fruit in the street

3. a person who writes for radio or television advertisements

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verb

1. (tr) to peddle

2. (tr) to sell or advertise aggressively or questionably

3. to haggle (over)

Other Word Forms

• hucksterish adjective
• hucksterism noun

Etymology

Origin of huckster

1150–1200; Middle English huccstere (perhaps cognate with Middle Dutch hokester ), equivalent to hucc- haggle (cognate with dialectal German hucken to huckster) + -stere -ster

Example Sentences

What can anyone expect from a huckster, who will peddle anything and anyone to line his pockets?

From Salon • Mar. 31, 2024

The show’s theme is California agriculture, its biblical title framing the Golden State as part fertile and utopian paradise, part huckster marketing dystopia.

From Los Angeles Times • May 15, 2023

The man may a huckster, a jaw-droppingly error-prone candidate, and, as his opponent for one of Pennsylvania’s Senate seats has reminded us many times, a New Jersey resident.

From Slate • Sep. 7, 2022

Traveling huckster Hill, newly arrived in River City, Iowa, is selling his con — a kids’ band — by disparaging the game of pool.

From Washington Post • Jul. 1, 2022

A watermelon huckster stood in the shade beside his truck, holding up a long slice of orange-mealed melon, crying his wares with hoarse appeals to nostalgia, memories of childhood, green shade and summer coolness.

From "Invisible Man" by Ralph Ellison