Peddler

noun

Someone who sells trinkets, clothes, gadgets, food, or other such individual objects outside of a formal setting, especially by working in the street or by soliciting homes
Someone who pushes for and proliferates certain ideas or policies
Someone who advertises a skill or service

Usage

Much more fun sounding than "salesperson" (perhaps it's the two "Ds"), the term peddler is most commonly used to describe a vendor who hawks wares outside of a formal setting, especially in a public place. They may settle in a specific area or may choose to travel to sell their merchandise. If you live in an urban area, you may be familiar with peddlers who work out of carts in parks or on street corners, or maybe you've had such a salesman come knocking on your door or calling your house at the EXACT moment you sit down for dinner.

Traditionally, peddlers are thought of as selling small, individual objects, such as souvenirs or pieces of fruit. However, as society continues to modernize, the term now also refers to vendors or organizations who make pitches online, over the telephone, and on television. Oftentimes, peddlers are relatively poor, attempting to make what living they can by tempting pedestrians with their goods. However, especially in today's age of media-dominance, many peddlers have found success by reaching a wide audience or by capitalizing on a susceptible market. Peddlers can also sell a skill or facility, such as gardening work or body-guard service.

Another usage of peddler describes someone who is trying to spread an idea or practice. These people are most commonly trying to influence the views of others; for example, a political candidate might be a peddler of libertarianism.

Unfortunately, the term peddler sometimes comes with a negative connotation. One contributing factor might be the assumption, in many cases inaccurate, that street vendors and traveling salesmen are peddling low-quality products and services. In fact, peddler is often used to refer to someone who is selling something seedy or reproachful, such as drugs, stolen goods, or sexual favors.

Example: Feeling thirsty, I stopped to buy a bottle of water from a peddler on the corner.

Example: In the 1950s, when McCarthyism was at its zenith, people were accused left and right of being peddlers of Communism.

Example: The young peddler made a fortune in winter, going door to door to offer his snow shoveling services.

Origin

Peddler originates from the Middle English word peddere, a term whose ped root possibly relates to a person traveling on foot from place to place. The term has been in use as a surname (to label someone as a hawker or traveling salesman) since the 1300s, and by the late fifteenth century it had entered the English lexicon as a general noun.

Derivative Words

Peddle is a verb which means to sell small, individual objects or services, or to spread a concept or idea - basically, it describes the actions of a peddler.

Example: The freelance lexicographer peddled his skills in the plaza, offering to define various words for confused passerby.

In Literature

From John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath:

I seen her beat the hell out of a tin peddler with a live chicken one time 'cause he give her an argument. She had the chicken in one han', an' the ax in the other, about to cut its head off. She aimed to go for that peddler with the ax, but she forgot which hand was which, an' she takes after him with the chicken.

Here, Tom Joad, in describing his mother as a tough woman, recalls an instance where she stood up to a traveling salesman, a peddler, who wouldn't leave her alone. Talk about doughtiness!

Mnemonic

A peddler will compel you to buy what he sells!