Waylayer

Part of speech: noun

Pronunciation: /weɪˈleɪə(ɹ)/

Definitions

1. A person who hides and waits to deceive and steal from individuals traveling along a route or pathway
2. An individual who conceals themselves to ambush and rob travelers on a journey or pathway
3. Someone who lurks in hiding places to attack and rob people traveling on paths

Etymology: "Waylayer" is a plain English compound: the verb "waylay" with the agent suffix "-er" attached, giving a literal sense of "one who lies in wait along the way." The verb itself is a combination of "way" and "lay," meaning to lie in wait for someone on their route, and the suffix comes into English through Middle English "-ere," which descends from Old English "-ere" and ultimately from the Latin "-arius," a suffix that marked a person connected with a particular activity or role. The suffix's journey is the more interesting part. Latin "-arius" passed into Old French as "-ier," which English adopted in Middle English as "-er," and that same ending was already present in native English words. So "waylayer" combines a native compound verb with a suffix that English had inherited through two separate routes, one Germanic and one Romance, which merged into the single ending we now use. The result is a word whose ending is really a meeting point of the two languages that shaped English.