dimber damber

See also: dimber-damber, Dimber Damber, and Dimber-Damber

English

Alternative forms

• dimber-damber
• Dimber Damber
• Dimber-Damber

Noun

dimber damber (plural dimber dambers)

1. (obsolete, UK, thieves' cant) The leader of a group of thieves or vagrants.
   • 1812, Robert Goadby, The Surprising Adventures of Bampfylde Moore Carew‎^[1], new edition, original published 1745, W. Salter Tiverton, page 280:

     First, a new name is given him, by which he is ever after to be called; then, standing up in the middle of the assembly, and directing his face to the dimber damber, or principal man of the gang, he repeats the following oath, which is dictated to him by some experienced member of the fraternity.

   • 1837, William Harrison Ainsworth, Rookwood, page 208:

     Dick Turpin must be one of us. He shall be our dimber damber.

   • 1992, Suzannah Davis, Dance of Deception, →ISBN, page 140:

     Smasher has the ear of every dimber damber in the city.

Synonyms

• See Thesaurus:criminal leader

References

• Albert Barrère and Charles G[odfrey] Leland, compilers and editors (1889–1890) “dimber damber”, in A Dictionary of Slang, Jargon & Cant […], volumes I (A–K), Edinburgh: […] The Ballantyne Press, →OCLC, page 310.
• John S[tephen] Farmer; W[illiam] E[rnest] Henley, compilers (1891) “dimber damber”, in Slang and Its Analogues Past and Present. […], volume II, [London: […] Harrison and Sons] […], →OCLC, page 287.