Word.ws English Dictionary

understrappers

understrappers is the plural of understrapper.

Meaning of understrapper

Noun

understrapper (plural understrappers)

  1. Any underling or inferior in office.
    • I have ſeen him lately at Bullogne, and am perfectly vvell acquainted vvith ſome perſons vvho have ſupplied him vvith French lace and embroidery; and, as a proof of vvhat I allege, I deſire you vvill order him and this barber, vvho is his underſtrapper, to be examined on the ſpot.1753, [Tobias Smollett], The Adventures of Ferdinand Count Fathom. […], volume I, London: […] W. Johnston, […], →OCLC, pages 214–215
  2. A freelance operator for MI5.
    • Alfie was familiar with the term ‘understrapper’. The Harry Fielding Alfie knew was an understrapper; a bob-a-job man for MI5. Somebody who could do a bit of house- or office-breaking, or some surveillance work.2000, Philip Davison, McKenzie’s Friend, Penguin, page 37

Questions about understrappers

What is understrappers the plural of?
Understrappers is the plural of understrapper.

Words near understrappers in the dictionary

  1. understories
  2. understory
  3. understorys
  4. understrap
  5. understrapper
  6. understrappers
  7. understrapping
  8. understraps
  9. understrata
  10. understratum
  11. understratums

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: understrappers (page history and authors); understrapper (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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Cite this entry: “understrappers.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/understrappers. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.