What does grasser mean?
A grasser is a person who informs on someone else, especially by telling the police or other authorities about wrongdoing. The term is informal and commonly carries a strongly negative implication: the person is portrayed not simply as a source of information but as a betrayer, an informer, or a snitch. It is used in both British and American English, although related expressions may vary in frequency and force between the two varieties. “Grasser” is especially associated with informing on an accomplice, a criminal associate, or someone within a group. As a result, it can suggest disloyalty within a community as strongly as it identifies someone who has given evidence. The word is also connected to the verb “grass,” meaning “to inform on.” Although relatively uncommon in formal writing, it remains vivid in journalism, crime reporting, political commentary, and fictional portrayals of informants.
nounAn informal term for a person who informs on another person, especially to the police or other authorities.
- A person who informs on another, especially to the police or other authorities.
"His friends suspected him of being a grasser after the police learned where they were staying."
"The police arrested two suspects after an anonymous grasser provided information about their hideout."
"In the novel, the informer is repeatedly dismissed as a grasser and a traitor."
The regular plural is used when referring to multiple people who inform on others.
"The investigation uncovered two grassers working for the same police unit."
A grasser is an informer: someone who “grasses” on another and turns loyalty into a confession.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does grasser come from?
“Grasser” is an agent noun formed from the informal verb “grass,” meaning “to inform on someone,” with the ordinary English suffix “-er” indicating the person who performs the action. The verb’s specialized origin is not securely established, so its earlier history should not be treated as certain. The term shares the spelling and pronunciation of the much older English noun “grass,” the plant, and of related forms such as “grassy” and “grassland.”
How grasser is actually used
This is an informal and generally derogatory term. It usually implies betrayal or disloyalty as well as the act of providing information.
Easily confused with grasser
Grass is the verb meaning “to inform on someone,” whereas a grasser is the person who provides the information.