A person who wears a disguise or costume, especially during Halloween or similar celebrations.
From 'guise' (a disguise or outward appearance) + '-er' (one who does). The word 'guise' comes from Old French 'guise' meaning manner or fashion, ultimately from Germanic roots. The suffix '-er' creates an agent noun.
In Scotland, children going trick-or-treating are called 'guisers' rather than 'trick-or-treaters' — it's a fascinating regional difference that shows how language divides even English-speaking countries, and it preserves an older meaning of 'guise' that's mostly died out in American English.
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