ragman

See also: Ragman

English

Etymology 1

From rag +‎ man.

Noun

ragman (plural ragmen)

1. A person who collects and sells unwanted household items such as rags and other refuse for a living, a rag and bone man.
   • 1918, Norman Lindsay, The Magic Pudding, page 14:

     For travellers have to carry bags, / And swagmen have to hump their swags / Like bottle-ohs or ragmen.

   • 1966, Bob Dylan (lyrics and music), “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again”, in Blonde on Blonde:

     Oh, the ragman draws circles / Up and down the block / I'd ask him what the matter was / But I know that he don't talk

Translations

collector of refuse

• Bulgarian: вехтошар m (vehtošar)
• Finnish: lumpunkerääjä, lumppuri, rättiläinen
• French: chiffonnier (fr) m
• German: Lumpensammler (de) m
• Greek: ρακοσυλλέκτης (el) m (rakosylléktis)
• Irish: fear ceirteacha m
• Italian: rigattiere (it) m, cenciaio m, cenciaiolo, straccivendolo m, robivecchi (it) m
• Latin: centōnārĭus m
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: fillepeller (no) m

• Polish: gałganiarz (pl) m, gałganiarka f, szmaciarz (pl) m, szmaciara f, szmaciarka f
• Spanish: ropavejero (es) m
• Swedish: lumpsamlare (sv) c

Etymology 2

Unknown.

Noun

ragman (countable and uncountable, plural ragmans)

1. (historical) A statute issued by Edward I in 1276.
2. (obsolete) A document having many names or seals, such as a papal bull.
   • c. 1390, William Langland, Piers Plowman, Prologue:

     He bonched hem with his breuet · & blered here eyes / And rauȝte with his ragman · rynges and broches […]

3. (historical, uncountable) A game in which players compete to pull an object from out of a roll of writing.

Related terms

• ragman roll, Ragman's Roll

Anagrams

• Garman, granma, mangar, marang