huckster

1 of 2

noun

huck·​ster ˈhək-stər 

1

: hawker, peddler

especially : one who sells or advertises something in an aggressive, dishonest, or annoying way

2

: one who produces promotional material for commercial clients especially for radio or television

hucksterism

ˈhək-stə-ˌri-zəm 

noun

huckster

2 of 2

verb

huckstered; huckstering ˈhək-st(ə-)riŋ 

intransitive verb

: haggle

transitive verb

1

: to deal in or bargain over

2

: to promote aggressively

Did you know?

Huckster comes from the Dutch noun hokester and verb hoeken, which means "to peddle."

Synonyms

Noun

• hawker
• peddler
• pedlar

Examples of huckster in a Sentence

Noun

hucksters outside the auditorium selling everything from key chains to life-size cutouts of the performers

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Some became performers and hucksters, craftspeople and con artists, drifters and thieves. —Caleb Madison, The Atlantic, 28 Oct. 2023

Like any religious huckster, though perhaps a shade more honest, Willie is a master of emotional manipulation and rhetorical force. —Justin Chang, Los Angeles Times, 10 Oct. 2023

The Conjuring–verse is an exercise in branding, the brainchild of master hucksters Ed and Lorraine Warren. —Vulture, 15 Sep. 2023

At the turn of the 20th century, the trans huckster Harry Allen was a notorious outlaw in the Pacific Northwest. —Evan Moffitt, New York Times, 5 Sep. 2023

Entrepreneurial huckster Vivek Ramaswamy has graduated from being the court jester of corporate governance to now becoming a serious contender for the GOP presidential nomination as some 5% of primary Republican voters indicate they are entertained by his antics. —Jeffrey Sonnenfeld, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2023

For a moment at least, Ramaswamy had pulled the elemental trick of both a politician and a huckster: making a banal idea seem forgotten, and new. —Benjamin Wallace-Wells, The New Yorker, 17 Aug. 2023

Inevitably, these hucksters and screw-ups used their particular talents to help the needy. —Time, 11 Aug. 2023

Denial has been co-opted too by contrarian figureheads, extolled by hucksters whose entire schtick is to define themselves entirely in opposition to the mainstream. —David Robert Grimes, Scientific American, 1 Sep. 2023

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Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English hukster, from Middle Dutch hokester, from hoeken to peddle

First Known Use

Noun

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1592, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense

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Kids Definition

huckster

noun

huck·​ster

ˈhək-stər

1

: one that peddles : hawker

hucksters selling souvenirs

2

: a writer of advertising especially for radio or television