Falstaff

American  

[fawl-staf, -stahf] / ˈfɔl stæf, -stɑf /

noun

1. Sir John, the jovial, fat knight of brazen assurance and few scruples in Shakespeare's Henry IV, Parts 1 and 2, and The Merry Wives of Windsor.

2. (italics) an opera (1893) by Giuseppe Verdi, with a libretto by Arrigo Boito based on the Shakespearean character.

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Falstaff Cultural  

1. An endearing, fat, aging rogue who appears in several of the plays of William Shakespeare. He is prominent in the two parts of King Henry the Fourth, where he is the jolly companion of Prince Hal, the future King Henry V. Falstaff is a lover of wine, women, and song; although a coward in practice, he loves to tell tales of his supposed bravery.

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Falstaff

Falstaff Road recalled a beer some dads drank.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026

The surf’s up, a chocolate-covered-banana stand is hopping and a washed-up Elvis-like rock star named Johnny Falstaff is trailing chaos.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026

The Falstaff of Shakespeare’s “The Merry Wives of Windsor” is not the complex figure of the “Henry IV” plays.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 23, 2026

“I am not only witty in myself, but the cause that wit is in other men,” Falstaff declared.

From Salon ● Oct. 2, 2024

Falstaff will never be decorous: and he is cast off.

From "Words Like Loaded Pistols" by Sam Leith

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