raffles

¹

[raf-uhlz]

noun

(often initial capital letter)

1. a gentlemanly burglar, amateur housebreaker, or the like.

Raffles

²

[raf-uhlz]

noun

1. Sir Thomas Stamford, 1781–1826, English colonial administrator in the East Indies.

Raffles

/ ˈræfəlz /

noun

1. Sir Thomas Stamford . 1781–1826, British colonial administrator: founded Singapore (1819) as a station for the British East India Company

Word History and Origins

Origin of raffles¹

1925–30; after Raffles, hero of The Amateur Cracksman, by E. W. Hornung (1866–1921), English novelist

Example Sentences

Known to the children as “aunty” or “grandma,” Johnson would treat them to dips in the pool at the Raffles and doted on them at the center.

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Third under top weight to Intense Raffles in last year's Irish Grand National before winning Bet365 Gold Cup at Sandown.

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A winner of the Thyestes Chase then Bobbyjo Chase, where Intense Raffles was runner-up, but that rival better off at the weights here.

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The Irish contingent also includes bargain buy Hewick, who cost just £800 and won the King George VI Chase in 2023, plus last year's third-place finisher and 2021 Cheltenham Gold Cup winner Minella Indo, as well as 2024 Irish Grand National victor Intense Raffles.

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Founded by Joan Littlewood and her partner Gerry Raffles, it was dedicated to modernising theatre and reaching working-class audiences.

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