ruffian
Americannoun
adjective
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of ruffian
1525–35; < Middle French < Italian ruffiano, perhaps < Langobardic *hruf scurf + Italian -ano -an
Explanation
A ruffian is a bully, someone who is violent toward others. Maybe they had a bad childhood, or perhaps they like the sound of people in pain. No matter where they come from, ruffians are best avoided. Soccer fans have a reputation for being ruffians. Sure, some are sensitive poetry-reading types, but the ones that get the most attention scream obscenities, break things, and fight each other. Ruffian comes from a Germanic word that literally translates as “scabbiness,” and perhaps ruffians are covered in scabs from all the fights they start. Sometimes a ruffian is a person involved in crime, however, the word is always used to describe someone who’s a cruel, violent jerk.
Vocabulary lists containing ruffian
"The Odyssey" by Homer, Books 1–7
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Hamilton
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Treasure Island
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
“Good Boy,” by Jan Komasa, has an arresting star turn by Anson Boon as a ruffian who gets chained up in a rich family’s cellar until he agrees to behave.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 8, 2025
The trial heard him described as a "ruffian" and a "street waif" who never stood still.
From BBC ● Jan. 27, 2025
In America, he's a ruffian who hunts with a bow and arrow.
From Salon ● Sep. 10, 2023
Belisle’s imagined Shiffler is no ruffian, but a well-spoken, humble youth who wants only to care for his family and win the hand of Irene Freeman, a blue-eyed Catholic orphan.
From Slate ● Sep. 1, 2021
But the ruffian flung it at his head and then darted out into the darkness.
From "The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
