bagman

noun bag·man \ ˈbag-mən \

Updated on: 4 Apr 2018

Definition of bagman

1 chiefly British : traveling salesman

2 : a person who on behalf of another collects or distributes illicitly gained money; broadly : an intermediary in an illicit or unethical transaction

Recent Examples of bagman from the Web

The white-suited bagman, a fixture since 1993 and one of his best friends, wasn't sure.

— rob hodgetts, CNN, "Fan favorite Phil Mickelson still pushing for grand slam glory," 30 Mar. 2018
The Feds have evidence suggesting former Xavier point guard Edmond Sumner and his father took $7,000 in cash advances from a bagman for a former NBA agent named Andy Miller.

— paul daugherty, Cincinnati.com, "Paul Daugherty: Xavier collateral damage in FBI's NCAA basketball probe," 23 Feb. 2018
And there was this friendly guy who could only be called his bagman.

— charles p. pierce, Esquire, "Where Is the Integrity?," 13 Sep. 2017
Its triad of main characters consists of Eddie Kerrigan, a bagman for a penny-ante racketeer; his charismatic daughter Anna; and Dexter Styles, a dapper nightclub owner and a big cheese in a major crime syndicate.

— sam sacks, WSJ, "The Best New Fiction," 29 Sep. 2017
With the Depression in full swing, former successful theater manager and independent stockbroker Eddie has been reduced to working as a bagman for a lowly Irish gangster.

— rayyan al-shawaf, Philly.com, "Jennifer Egan's 'Manhattan Beach': Inspired, enthralling tale of a woman who dives deep," 22 Oct. 2017
The leader of the Massachusetts State Senate was put on trial for extorting money from one of the guys who’d been his bagman for over a decade.

— charles p. pierce, SI.com, "Latest College Basketball Scandal Carries Stench of Prosecutorial Overreach," 30 Sep. 2017
Its triad of main characters consists of Eddie Kerrigan, a bagman for a penny-ante racketeer

— sam sacks, WSJ, "The Best New Fiction," 29 Sep. 2017
The most suspect funds were brought in by Johnny Chung, a bagman for the Asian billionaire Riady family.

— john fund, National Review, "Not All Foreign-Influence Scandals Are Created Equal," 16 July 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bagman.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.