scarper
(intransitive) To depart quickly; to escape, to flee, to run away.
Etymology timeline
Born ~1914 · no dated citations yetDefinitions
(intransitive) To depart quickly; to escape, to flee, to run away.
A horse takes fright and "scarpers," or runs away.
Comments
(transitive, dated) Chiefly in scarper the letty: to depart quickly or run away from (a place); to flee.
We were in debt with the landlady, and Joe and I had decided that none of us should be allowed to "scarper the letty," which means to sneak out of the lodgings without paying. The good lady might have to wait for her money—that was obvio…
Scarper means: Chiefly in scarper the letty: to depart quickly or run away from (a place); to flee.. There is no real cause for parental concern; it is descriptive vocabulary rather than risky behaviour. As a place or proper-name reference it is purely descriptive. If your teen uses it, context will usually make the intent clear. A short, curious question about where they heard it is usually all that is needed to know whether to follow up.
scarper means: Chiefly in scarper the letty: to depart quickly or run away from (a place); to flee.. Register: dated, informal. A common learner mistake is using the word in a register it does not fit, or assuming a single global meaning; native speakers immediately notice when slang appears in formal contexts, so always check the surrounding register before producing it yourself.
Comments
(UK, slang) Chiefly in do a scarper: an act of departing quickly or running away; an escape, a flight.
As a matter of fact we were all pritty flabergasted, for although we had all planned to do a scarper none of us realy thought we would have the guts to do it.
Comments
Used in
Have a better definition?
Add your own interpretation of "scarper".
🇬🇧About British & Irish slang slang
UK and Irish slang — Cockney, Scouse, Geordie, Yorkshire, Glaswegian, Brummie, Welsh, West Country, plus Irish English. Centuries of regional dialects feeding into modern British and Irish street talk.
See all British & Irish slang slang on Slangora.
Tags
Other words near "scarper" (S)
Browse all slang words starting with S.