ruffian

English

Etymology

From Middle French rufian, from Italian ruffiano (“pimp”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈɹʌfi.ən/

• Audio (Southern England)

  (file)

• Hyphenation: ruf‧fi‧an

Noun

ruffian (plural ruffians)

1. A scoundrel, rascal, or unprincipled, deceitful, brutal and unreliable person.

   Synonyms: rogue, scamp; see also Thesaurus:troublemaker

   • 1591 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Second Part of Henry the Sixt, […]”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies. […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act V, scene i], page 145, column 1:

     What wilt thou on thy death-bed play the Ruffian?

   • 1894, George du Maurier, “Part Fifth: Little Billee: An Interlude”, in Trilby: A Novel, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers, →OCLC, page 259:

     It was at Count Siloszech's. He'd heard her sing in the streets, with a tall, black-bearded ruffian, who accompanied her on a guitar, and a little fiddling gypsy fellow. She was a handsome woman, with hair down to her knees, but stupid as an owl.

2. (obsolete) A pimp; a pander.

   Synonyms: see Thesaurus:pimp

3. (obsolete) A lover; a paramour.
   • 1621, John Reynolds, The Triumphs of God's Revenge against the crying and execrable Sinne of Murther:

     He [her husband] is no sooner abroad than she is instantly at home, revelling with her ruffians.

Translations

scoundrel, rascal

• Bulgarian: грубиян (bg) m (grubijan), хулиган (bg) m (huligan)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 痞子 (zh) (pǐzi)

• Dutch: schelm (nl) m, schurk (nl) m
• Finnish: räyhääjä (fi), öykkäri (fi), rettelöijä (fi)
• French: rufian (fr), voyou (fr), brute (fr)
• German: Raubein (de) n
• Greek: κακούργος (el) m (kakoúrgos)
• Irish: ruifíneach m, bithiúnach m
• Italian: facinoroso (it) m
• Khmer: អ្នកលេងកាប់ចាក់ (neak leeŋ kap cak)
• Macedonian: грубијан m (grubijan)
• Norwegian: bølle
• Plautdietsch: Ruchull m
• Polish: artysta (pl) m, artystka (pl) f
• Portuguese: rufião (pt) m
• Russian: негодя́й (ru) m (negodjáj), хулига́н (ru) m (xuligán), буя́н (ru) m (buján)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: грубѝја̄н m, силѐџија m

  Roman: grubìjān (sh) m, silèdžija (sh) m

• Slovene: please add this translation if you can
• Spanish: rufián (es) m
• Swedish: skurk (sv) c, rackare (sv) c, slyngel (sv) c, lymmel (sv) c
• Yiddish: כוליגאַן m (khuligan)

Verb

ruffian (third-person singular simple present ruffians, present participle ruffianing, simple past and past participle ruffianed)

1. To play the ruffian; to rage; to raise tumult.
   • c. 1603–1604 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Othello, the Moore of Venice”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene i]:

     Methinks the wind does speak aloud at land; A fuller blast ne'er shook our battlements. If it hath ruffianed so upon the sea.

Adjective

ruffian (comparative more ruffian, superlative most ruffian)

1. Brutal; cruel; savagely boisterous; murderous.

   ruffian rage

Part or all of this entry has been imported from the 1913 edition of Webster’s Dictionary, which is now free of copyright and hence in the public domain. The imported definitions may be significantly out of date, and any more recent senses may be completely missing.
(See the entry for “ruffian”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.)

Anagrams

• funfair

French

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʁy.fjɑ̃/

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

ruffian m (plural ruffians)

1. Alternative spelling of rufian
   • 1943, Jean Ray, Malpertuis, published 1978, page 8:

     Il n’y a que la fortune pour faire d’un ruffian un honnête homme, soumis aux lois humaines.

     (please add an English translation of this quotation)

Further reading

• “ruffian”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.