noun
- a person who searches for gold or gemstones, especially in alluvial deposits or abandoned mining areas
Usage: chiefly Australian and New Zealand English
verb
- to search for gold or gemstones in alluvial deposits or abandoned mining areas
- to search or rummage through something in a disorganized way
Usage: chiefly Australian and New Zealand English
Usage: informal; chiefly Australian and New Zealand English
Examples
- The old fossicker spent decades searching creek beds for gold.
- She decided to fossick in the abandoned mine for gemstones.
- He was fossicking through the attic looking for old photographs.
- Many fossickers came to the region during the gold rush.
- They fossicked along the riverbank every weekend.
- Don't fossick around in my desk drawers without permission.