1. people who travel from place to place selling or distributing books, especially religious books and pamphlets
Usage: historical; often refers to religious book distributors

Examples

• The colporteurs traveled through rural villages spreading religious literature.
• In the 19th century, colporteurs played an important role in distributing Bibles to remote areas.
• The missionary society trained colporteurs to sell books door-to-door.
• These colporteurs carried heavy packs filled with religious pamphlets and books.
• The colporteurs were welcomed in some towns but turned away in others.
• Many colporteurs worked for religious organizations spreading their faith through literature.