scalper

scalp +‎ -er

scalper (plural scalpers)

1. One who scalps, or removes the scalp of another.
   • 2013, M. Elise Marubbio, Eric L. Buffalohead, Native Americans on Film: Conversations, Teaching, and Theory:

     Denouncing representations of hostile Indians as vicious scalpers of innocent settlers […]

2. (US, Canada) One who scalps tickets to popular entertainment events: buying them in advance and then selling them (e.g. online or just outside the venue of the event), often at inflated prices.

   Synonym: (UK) ticket tout

   We could see three different scalpers moving through the crowd outside the arena, each muttering the characteristic refrain: “Need any tickets?”

   • 2023 December 6, Sam Lansky, “Person of Year 2023 : Taylor Swift”, in Time‎:

     Although 4.1 million tickets were sold for the 2023 shows—including over 2 million on the first day, a new record—scalpers jacked up prices on the secondary market to more than $22,000.

3. (by extension) One who scalps any other item with limited availability.
4. (gambling) A gambler who scalps.
   • 1961, John Scarne, Complete Guide to Gambling, page 102:

     The only sure thing about scalping the Series today is that the scalper is paying the bookie a greater profit because he is making a greater number of bets.

5. (finance) A person on an open outcry exchange trading floor who buys and sells rapidly for his or her own account, aiming to buy from a seller and a little later sell to a buyer, making a small profit from the difference (roughly the amount of the bid/offer spread, or less).
6. A machine for removing the ends of grain, such as wheat or rye, or for separating the different grades of broken wheat, semolina, etc.
7. A surgical instrument for scraping carious bones.

   Synonym: scalping-iron

• carpels, clasper, craples, parcels, placers, reclasp

From English scalp +‎ -er.

• IPA^(key): /skal.pe/

• Audio:

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scalper

1. (transitive) to scalp

• “scalper”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé , 2012.