Definition/Meaning of quacksalver

• English - Noun: quacksalver ( plural quacksalvers ) ( archaic ) One falsely claiming to possess medical or other skills , especially one who dispenses potions , ointments , etc . supposedly having curative powers . 1822 , Sir Walter Scott , Peveril of the Peak , ch . 38: "Your Grace does not mean Dr . Wilderhead's powder of projection?" "Pshaw! he is a quacksalver , and mountebank , and beggar ." 1910 , Jeffrey…
• English - Alternative forms: quack-salver
• English - Etymology: c 1570, from Dutch kwakzalver ( “ hawker of salve ” ), from Middle Dutch quacken ( “ to brag , boast; to croak ” )