# interloper

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˌɪntəˈləʊ̯pə/ · frequency rank #65,996

## Definitions
1. One who interferes, intrudes or gets involved where not welcome, particularly a self-interested intruder.
2. An unlicensed or illegitimate trader.

## Etymology
From inter- + loper (“runner, rover”), as in landloper (“vagrant”) (from lope (“to leap, to jump”) (originally dialectal)). Originally spelt enterloper and used in specific sense, “unauthorized trader trespassing on privileges of chartered companies”, later general sense of “self-interested intruder” from 1630s.

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/interloper