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What is the history of the word gangster?
Gangster came into the English language at the latter portion of the 19th century, as one of what is now a large parcel of words which have been formed by adding the noun combining form –ster to an existing word. The ending -ster has a number of possible meanings (“one that does, handles, or operates,” “one that makes or uses,” “one that is associated with or participates in,” “one that is”), and one of its interesting elements is that it has, in many cases, shifted its gender. This second portion of gangster comes from the Old English -estre, meaning “female agent.” The word tapster ("a bartender"), for instance, was tæppestre in Old English, and designated a barmaid, or female tapster. In modern use the addition of -ster may often be found in a gender-neutral sense, as with hipster, or with implications of masculinity, as with gangster and mobster, through prevalence of usage.
Examples of gangster in a Sentence
Jazz Tangcay, Variety, 9 Feb. 2026
Directed and co-written by Alexandre Rockwell, the film follows an aspiring filmmaker (Steve Buscemi) who falls in with an irresistibly charming gangster (Seymour Cassel, who won Sundance’s first acting award) as his erstwhile producer.
—Mark Olsen, Los Angeles Times, 6 Feb. 2026
That history dates back to the days before Prohibition an the reign of notorious Chicago gangster Al Capone.
—Noel Brennan, CBS News, 5 Feb. 2026
Using the cattle drive, a device that is to Western legend as prohibition is to that other staple of pop American theology, the gangster fable, TV’s Lonesome Dove creates a moving (in both senses of the word) depiction of the never-never-land/once-upon-a-time West of reconstructed recollection.
—Miles Beller, HollywoodReporter, 4 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for gangster
Cite this Entry
“Gangster.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gangster. Accessed 15 Feb. 2026.
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