Scaramouch

American  

[skar-uh-mouch, -moosh] / ˈskær əˌmaʊtʃ, -ˌmuʃ /

Or Scaramouche

noun

1. a stock character in commedia dell'arte and farce who is a cowardly braggart, easily beaten and frightened.

2. (lowercase) a rascal or scamp.

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Scaramouch British  

/ -ˌmuːtʃ, ˈskærəˌmaʊtʃ /

noun

1. a stock character who appears as a boastful coward in commedia dell'arte and farce

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Etymology

Origin of Scaramouch

First recorded in 1662; from French Scaramouche, from Italian Scaramuccia, proper noun use of scaramuccia “skirmish” (applied in jest); see origin at skirmish ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Scaramouch

Various gay masqueraders, interrupted by return of the Doctor, are carried by Scaramouch behind the curtain.

From The Spectator, Volume 1 Eighteenth-Century Periodical Essays by Addison, Joseph

Hurtling Trivellino fine, On a trill intent, Scaramouch to Columbine Gives the fan she lent.

From Enamels and Cameos and other Poems by Lee, Agnes

The great foreign chemist, Professor Scaramouch, has the credit of the discovery.

From Loss and Gain The Story of a Convert by Newman, John Henry

Enter Scaramouch, peeping on all sides before he enters.

From The Works of Aphra Behn, Volume III by Summers, Montague

Lapet, the very prince of cowards; in the French drama, La Capitan, Metamore, and Scaramouch.

From Character Sketches of Romance, Fiction and the Drama, Vol. 1 A Revised American Edition of the Reader's Handbook by Brewer, Ebenezer Cobham