Meanings
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1
noun
British dialect, dated and sometimes offensive: an itinerant tinker, traveler, or member of a traveling community
The servant said the disguised fortune-teller looked like a tinkler from the road.
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2
noun
a small bell or another object that makes a light ringing sound
A silver tinkler on the door announced each arriving customer.
Thesaurus
Etymology
Two formations converged. The bell sense is tinkle + -er, literally something that tinkles. The dialect occupational sense is a variant of tinker, historically an itinerant mender of metalware; its extension to traveling people can now be derogatory and should be understood in historical context.