Meanings
plural spielers · alternative shpieler · alternative speiler
- AustraliaNew ZealandslangA swindler, a gambler.
That a crowd of Sydney stealers, Jockeys, pugilists and spielers Brought some horses, real heelers, Came and put us through.
1891, Banjo Paterson, An Evening in Dandaloo1 more example
‘A spieler,’ Leah gently loosened the painful crab hold of the boy's hand. ‘[…] A trickster. A quandong. A ripperty man. A con-man.’
1985, Peter Carey, Illywhacker, Faber and Faber, published 2003, page 228 - A gambling club.
- A person who speaks fluently and glibly; a barker.
"Bosco! He eats 'em alive! Eats 'em alive!" Brissenden exclaimed, imitating the spieler of a locally famous snake-eater.
1908 September – 1909 September, Jack London, chapter 31, in Martin Eden, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company, published September 1909, →OCLC1 more example
Two thousand men, women and children turned out for this giant excursion and danced and drank the day away while professional spielers extolled the virtues of the new metropolis and inveigled the unwary into investment.
1961, Vincent F. Seyfried, The Long Island Rail Road: A Comprehensive History, Part I - CanadaUSinformalbroadcastingA radio or television announcer.
Origin
- GermanSpieler“player, gambler”
- Englishspieler
From German Spieler (“player, gambler”) or from spiel.
More words from German
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
spieler. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spieler
“spieler.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spieler. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “spieler,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/spieler.
Source: spieler on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.