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car·pet·bag·ger

(kärpĭt-băg′ər)

1. A Northerner who went to the South after the Civil War for political or financial advantage.

2. An outsider, especially a politician, who presumptuously seeks a position or success in a new locality.

[So called because they carried their belongings in carpetbags.]

carpet·bag′ger·y n.

(click for a larger image)

carpetbagger

colorized 1872 cartoon by Thomas Nast depicting Senator Carl Schurz (1820-1906) as a carpetbagger

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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