Meanings
tosher1
plural toshers
- historicalcantA thief who steals the copper siding from the bottoms of vessels, particularly in or along the Thames.
Toshers, men who steal copper from ships' bottoms in the Thames.
1859, J.C. Hotten, A dictionary of modern slang, cant, and vulgar words used at the present day, preceded by a history of cant and vulgar language, with glossaries of two secret languages, by a London antiquary - historicalA scavenger of valuables lost in the sewers, particularly those of London during the Victorian Age.
The sewer-hunters were formerly, and indeed are still, called by the name of ‘Toshers’, the articles which they pick up in the course of their wanderings along shore being known among themselves by the general term ‘tosh’, a word more particularly applied by them to anything made of copper.
1851, H. Mayhew, London labour and the London poor, II. 150/2
tosher2
Tosher3
comparative more Tosher · superlative most Tosher · alternative Tasher
- Pertaining to the Tosh Hassidic community.
Origin
tosher · noun
From 19th-century British thieves' cant tosh (“copper; items made of copper”) + -er (“one who uses or acquires”).
Full word history & related roots →Tosher · adjective, noun
- Hebrewטאהש
- EnglishTosher
From Tosh + -er. From Hebrew טאהש.
More words from Hebrew
Full word history & related roots →Translations
French Tosher, Tosher
- Tosher(pertaining of the Tosh
- Toshermember of the Tosh
Polish związany ze wspólnotą Tass, członek wspólnoty Tass
- związany ze wspólnotą Tass(pertaining of the Tosh
- członek wspólnoty Tassmember of the Tosh
- członkini wspólnoty Tassmember of the Tosh
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
tosher. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tosher
“tosher.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tosher. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tosher,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tosher.
Source: tosher on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.