# quacksalver

> English word · Noun · IPA /ˈkwæksælvə/

## Definitions
1. One falsely claiming to possess medical or other skills, especially one who dispenses potions, ointments, etc., supposedly having curative powers; a quack.

## Etymology
From Dutch quacksalver (“a hawker of salve”) (now spelt kwakzalver), derived from Middle Dutch quacsalven (noun or verb), from kwaken (“to boast, to brag; to croak”) + salve (“ointment, salve”) (modern Dutch zalf) + -er (agent noun suffix).

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