| Definitions | | spiv |
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noun
- (context, UK, dated) a smartly dressed person who trades in illicit, black-market or stolen goods
- (context, UK, dated) a flashy con artist, often homeless, who lives by his wits
- (context, UK, dated) in Scotland Yard usage, a low and common thief
- (context, UK, dated) a slacker; one who shirks responsibility
Etymology: Perhaps from spiff, spiffy.'Spiv' was the nickname of Henry Bagster, a Londoner arrested a number of times in 1904-6 for activities as described below, and may have been the archetype.
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