Pedler

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A seller of goods who typically travels to different places to engage customers directly in trade
2. An individual who promotes and sells items from place to place, often targeting consumers without a permanent storefront
3. A person who travels to various locations to sell merchandise directly to consumers without relying on a fixed shop location

Etymology: The spelling "pedler" is the older form of "peddler," and the two have traveled together for centuries. The word descends from Middle English "pedlere" and "pedlare," which were themselves altered from an earlier "peddere," meaning hawker or peddler. Nobody is certain where that earlier form came from, and the sources are candid about it. The most tempting theory links it to Medieval Latin "pedārius," a word built on Latin "pedāre," meaning "to furnish with feet" or "to prop up." The connection is attractive, since a person carrying wares on foot or a pack seems to be given legs, but the link is only a possibility, and nothing firmly ties the English word to that Latin source.

Synonyms: peddler, vendor, salesperson