body snatcher

C2 Topic:People & Society

US /ˈbɑːdi ˌsnætʃɚ/ UK /ˈbɒdi ˌsnætʃə/ See IPA manual

Freq #309222

Meanings

1

noun
historical: a person who illegally removed recently buried corpses from graves, especially to sell them for anatomical dissection

The cemetery hired night watchmen after a body snatcher disturbed a newly made grave.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · historical: a person who... resurrectionistresurrection mancorpse thief

Word family

Derived forms body-snatching

Related forms grave robbercadaver dissection anatomist

Etymology

An English compound of body + snatcher, the agent noun of snatch. Merriam-Webster dates body snatcher to about 1812. The term arose for the grave robbers also called resurrectionists, who supplied illegally exhumed corpses to anatomists when legal cadavers were scarce; Britain's Anatomy Act of 1832 addressed the conditions that fostered the trade.

Topics

People & Society Word Formation & Derivatives Register & Style

External links

# body snatcher

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** /ˈbɑːdi ˌsnætʃɚ/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈbɒdi ˌsnætʃə/
**Frequency rank:** 309222

## Meanings
1. historical: a person who illegally removed recently buried corpses from graves, especially to sell them for anatomical dissection

## Examples
- The cemetery hired night watchmen after a body snatcher disturbed a newly made grave.

## Synonyms
- resurrectionist
- resurrection man
- corpse thief

## Derived Forms
- body-snatching

## Related Forms
- grave robber
- cadaver
- dissection
- anatomist

## Etymology
An English compound of body + snatcher, the agent noun of snatch. Merriam-Webster dates body snatcher to about 1812. The term arose for the grave robbers also called resurrectionists, who supplied illegally exhumed corpses to anatomists when legal cadavers were scarce; Britain's Anatomy Act of 1832 addressed the conditions that fostered the trade.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Word Formation & Derivatives
- Register & Style

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