snitch

English

Etymology

Origin uncertain. Perhaps an alteration of snatch, or a dialectal variant of sneak, from Middle English sniken, from Old English snīcan (“to creep; crawl”). More at sneak.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /snɪtʃ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɪtʃ

Verb

1. (transitive) To inform on, especially in betrayal of others.
2. (slang, transitive) To contact or cooperate with the police for any reason.
3. (dated, transitive) To steal, quickly and quietly.
   • 1939, P. G. Wodehouse, Uncle Fred in the Springtime:

     Besides, I shall require your help in snitching the pig. But I was forgetting. You are not abreast of that side of our activities, are you? Emsworth has a pig. The Duke wants it.

Synonyms

• (to steal): filch, pilfer, pocket; See also Thesaurus:steal
• (to inform on): drop a dime, grass up, rat out; See also Thesaurus:rat out
• (cooperate with the police):

Translations

steal

• Czech: otočit (cs) pf, šlohnout pf, čmajznout pf
• Dutch: gappen (nl)
• Finnish: varastaa (fi), pihistää (fi), kähveltää (fi), pölliä (fi)
• French: piquer (fr), voler (fr)
• German: klauen (de), stibitzen (de)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Italian: sgraffignare (it), grattare (it), rubare (it)
• Russian: стащить (ru) (staščitʹ)
• Spanish: afanar (es), mangar (es), robar (es), hurtar (es)
• Swedish: sno (sv), snatta (sv), knycka (sv)
• Westrobothnian: ,

inform on

• Danish: stikke, sladre
• Dutch: verlinken (nl), verklikken (nl)
• Finnish: kieliä (fi), vasikoida (fi), kannella, laulaa (fi), laverrella
• French: balancer (fr)
• German: petzen (de), verpetzen (de), verpfeifen (de)
• Hebrew: הלשין (he) (hilshín)
• Italian: informare (it), fare la spia, fare la soffiata
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Norwegian: sladre
• Portuguese: delatar (pt), dedurar, xisnovar (informal)
• Russian: нашёптывать (ru) impf (našóptyvatʹ), нашепта́ть (ru) pf (našeptátʹ)
• Spanish: chivarse (es), chivatear (es), delatar (es)
• Swedish: skvallra (sv), tjalla (sv), gola (sv)

contact or cooperate with the police

• Czech: práskat (cs) impf
• Dutch: verklikken (nl)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Finnish: vasikoida (fi), ilmiantaa (fi)
• French: moucharder (fr)
• German: Spitzeldienste verrichten, Spitzeldienste erledigen
• Swedish: tjalla (sv), gola (sv)

Noun

snitch (plural snitches)

1. A thief.
2. An informer, usually one who betrays his group.
3. (British) A nose.
   • 1897, W.S. Maugham, Lisa of Lambeth, chapter 1

     'Yah, I wouldn't git a second-'and dress at a pawnbroker's!'

     'Garn!' said Liza indignantly. 'I'll swipe yer over the snitch if yer talk ter me. [...] "

   • 1978, Brenda R. Silver, quoting Alan Bennett, Virginia Woolf icon‎^[1], University of Chicago Press, published 1999, →ISBN, Take Seven: British Graffiti: Me ,I'm Afraid of Virginia Woolf and Sammy And Rosie Get Laid, page 158:

     On one level clearly emblematic of her class status, “she’d have really looked down her snitch at me”), Virginia Woolf's nose, both Bennett and his audience would know, signifies as well the far more frightening power, the phallic power, attributed to women, strong women in particular.

   • 1999 September 27, "billy", “Re: Babies Having Babies”, in uk.media.tv.misc‎^[2] (Usenet):

     Bluenoze: Blow your nose to clear your snitch of whatever it is you've been snorting and read the postings again.

   • 1999 March 26, G Greenway, “Re: aah-cho!!”, in alt.gothic‎^[3] (Usenet):

     Question: do benign bacteria live in one's snitch and keep the other, nastier ones at bay ?

   • 2001 July 27, catmandoo, “Re: Please help me to be 'correct'.”, in uk.local.isle-of-wight‎^[4] (Usenet):

     Have a perpetual dew drop hanging from your snitch

4. A tiny morsel.
   • 1963, Jack Schaefer, Monte Walsh, p 3

     "He pays for the food you eat," said the woman.

     "Yeah," said the boy. "And I earn every snitch doing everything ever gets done around here."

Synonyms

• (thief): filcher, pincher; See also Thesaurus:thief
• (informer): grass, mole, rat, stool pigeon; See also Thesaurus:informant
• (nose): schnozz, sneck; See also Thesaurus:nose
• (morsel): bite, snap, snippock

Derived terms

• snitches get stitches

• snitches get stitches and wind up in ditches

Translations

thief

• Danish: tyv (da), tyveknægt (male)
• Finnish: varas (fi), voro (fi), kähveltäjä
• French: voleur (fr) m, voleuse (fr) f
• German: Dieb (de) m, Langfinger (de) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Polish: złodziej (pl) m
• Russian: вор (ru) m (vor), воро́вка (ru) f (voróvka), ворю́га (ru) m or f (vorjúga) (colloquial), вори́шка (ru) m or f (voríška) (colloquial)
• Spanish: ladrón (es) m, ladrona (es) f
• Swedish: snattare (sv)

informer, usually one who betrays his group

• Catalan: espieta m or f
• Czech: práskač m, bonzák (cs) m,udavač m
• Danish: stikker (informant), forræder (traitor)
• Dutch: verklikker (nl) m
• Finnish: vasikka (fi), ilmiantaja (fi); kantelupukki (colloquial, child language)
• French: balance (fr) f, délateur (fr) m, informateur (fr) m, indicateur (fr) m, indic (fr) m, dénonciateur (fr) m, mouchard (fr)
• German: Spitzel (de) m, Informant (de) m
• Hebrew: מלשין m (malshín)
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Hungarian: besúgó (hu), spicli (hu), vamzer (hu)
• Italian: pentito (it) m, traditore (it) m, spia (it) f, delatore (it) m
• Macedonian: кодош m (kodoš)
• Norwegian: sladrehank (no)
• Polish: donosiciel (pl) m, (coll.) kapuś (pl) m
• Portuguese: dedo-duro (pt)
• Russian: доно́счик (ru) m (donósčik), доно́счица (ru) f (donósčica), стука́ч (ru) m (stukáč), стука́чка (ru) f (stukáčka) (slang)
• Spanish: chivato (es) m, soplón m, delator (es) m, sapo (es)
• Swedish: tjallare (sv) c (colloquial), skvallerbytta (sv) c (colloquial, child language), golare (sv) c (slang)

nose

• Polish: nochal m, kinol (pl) m
• (deprecated template usage) {{trans-mid}}
• Russian: нос (ru) m (nos) (neutral), шно́бель (ru) m (šnóbelʹ) (slang), руби́льник (ru) m (rubílʹnik) (slang), пята́к (ru) m (pjaták) (slang)

Anagrams

• chints