A person who steals or engages in theft; a pickpocket or thief, particularly in historical thieves' cant and slang.
Derived from 'cly' (a stolen object or pickpocket's target) with the agent suffix '-er,' which forms nouns meaning 'one who does' or 'one who is.' This term originates from criminal slang.
Like 'cly' itself, 'clyer' is a word from thieves' cant—a fascinating linguistic subculture where criminals created coded language; many such words have disappeared, but they give us a window into historical underworld life and language innovation.
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