barker

See also: Barker

English

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbɑː(ɹ)kɚ/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

  Rhymes: -ɑː(ɹ)kɚ

Etymology 1

From Middle English berkere; equivalent to bark (“dog noise”) +‎ -er.

Noun

barker (plural barkers)

1. Someone or something who barks.

   Synonym: (obsolete) latrant

   My neighbor's dog is a constant barker that keeps me awake at night.

   • 1938, Norman Lindsay, Age of Consent, 1st Australian edition, Sydney, N.S.W.: Ure Smith, published 1962, →OCLC, page 42:

     Edmund was barker on sight, like foolish stay-at-home dogs.

2. A person employed to solicit customers by calling out to passersby, e.g. at a carnival.

   Synonyms: tout, (Australia) spruiker

   Hyponym: doorsman

   Bob had amassed a considerable stockpile of double entendres from his days working as a barker for a strip joint.

   • 1893, James Otis, The Adventures of a Country Boy at a Country Fair‎^[1]:

     […] this fakir was doing a big business, as was shown by the fact that he could afford to hire a barker, who cried continually at the full strength of his lungs: "Come up now, and try your luck! […] "

   • 2013 June 7, David Simpson, “Fantasy of navigation”, in The Guardian Weekly‎^[2], volume 188, number 26, page 36:

     For every dedicated scientist patiently recording atmospheric pressure and wind speed while shivering at high altitudes, there is a carnival barker with a bevy of pretty girls willing to dangle from a basket or parachute down to earth.

3. A shelf-talker.
4. (video games) A video game mode where the action is demonstrated to entice someone to play the game.

   The barker looks action-packed, but actually playing the game is rather dull

5. (slang, dated) A pistol.

   Synonym: barking iron

   • 1838, Boz [pseudonym; Charles Dickens], Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy’s Progress. […], volumes (please specify |volume=I, II, or III), London: Richard Bentley, […], →OCLC:

     Barney, opening a cupboard, brought forth several articles, which he hastily crammed into the pockets.
     “Barkers for me, Barney," said Toby Crackit.
     “Here they are,” replied Barney, producing a pair of pistols.

   • 1969, George MacDonald Fraser, Flashman, page 45:

     Parkin, the Oxford Street gunmaker, sent me a brace of barkers in silver mountings, with my initials engraved—good for trade, I imagine.

6. The spotted redshank.

Translations

one who barks

• Latin: lātrātor m

person employed to solicit customers by calling out to passersby

• French: aboyeur (fr) m
• German: Anpreiser m, Rekommandeur m, Marktschreier (de) m
• Greek: κράχτης (el) m (kráchtis)
• Italian: buttadentro m
• Occitan: abaiaire m
• Turkish: çığırtkan (tr)

Etymology 2

From Middle English barker; equivalent to bark (“surface of tree”) +‎ -er.

Noun

barker (plural barkers)

1. (historical) A person who removes needed or valuable tree bark, as on a cinnamon or cinchona plantation.

   The profession of barker has been made largely obsolete by the realization that in most cases saplings can be cultivated far more profitably.

2. (obsolete) A tanner.

   The profession of barker has been made largely obsolete by the introduction of more effective tanning agents, but it lives on as a surname.

3. A machine used to remove unneeded bark from wood.

   Run these logs through the barker so we can use them as fence posts.

Translations

a person who strips needed or valuable bark

• Spanish: cascador, cascarillero

Danish

Noun

barker

1. indefinite plural of bark

Middle English

Alternative forms

• berker, barkere, barkar

Etymology

From bark +‎ -er.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbarkər(ə)/

Noun

barker (plural barkers)

1. tanner, barker

Descendants

• English: barker

References

• “barker, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-08-12.

Norwegian Bokmål

Noun

barker m

1. indefinite plural of bark

Tagalog

Etymology

Borrowed from English barker.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈbaɾkeɾ/, [ˈbaɾ.kɛɾ]
• Hyphenation: bar‧ker

Noun

barker (Baybayin spelling ᜊᜇ᜔ᜃᜒᜇ᜔)

1. barker that calls out passengers at a public transportation terminal

Further reading

• “barker”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila, 2018