common scold

American  

noun

1. (in early common law) a habitually rude and brawling woman whose conduct was subject to punishment as a public nuisance.

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Etymology

Origin of common scold

First recorded in 1760–70

Example Sentences

"He is not to be a common scold," he wrote in an opinion reprinted recently in the Atlantic.

From Time Magazine Archive

He envisions himself as a kind of public conscience to the profession, and succeeds at least in being its common scold.

From Time Magazine Archive

But, as always, Khrushchev on tour turned out to be part frolicking peasant, part common scold.

From Time Magazine Archive

What transformed old faithful into a common scold was a series of federal safety regulations.

From Time Magazine Archive

It is thus that I would see America, not as schoolmistress or common scold to the nations, but as chosen leader by example, rather than by authority.

From The Builders by Glasgow, Ellen Anderson Gholson