ragamuffin
[ rag-uh-muhf-in ]
/ ˈræg əˌmʌf ɪn /
noun
a ragged, disreputable person; tatterdemalion.
a child in ragged, ill-fitting, dirty clothes.
RELATED WORDS
beggar, urchin, vagrant, orphan, waif, tramp, tatterdemalion, bum, vagabond, loafer, hobo, wastrel, guttersnipe, gamin, scarecrow
Nearby words
Origin of ragamuffin
1350–1400; Middle English Ragamoffyn, name of a demon in the poem Piers Plowman
SYNONYMS FOR ragamuffin
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for ragamuffin
ragamuffin
/ (ˈræɡəˌmʌfɪn) /
noun
a ragged unkempt person, esp a child
another name for ragga
Word Origin for ragamuffin
C14 Ragamoffyn, name of a demon in the poem Piers Plowman (1393); probably based on rag 1
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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ragamuffin
mid-14c., "demon," also in surnames (Isabella Ragamuffyn, 1344), from Middle English raggi "ragged" ("rag-y"?) + fanciful ending (or else second element is Middle Dutch muffe "mitten"). Or, as Johnson has it, "From rag and I know not what else." Ragged was used of the devil from c.1300 in reference to "shaggy" appearance. Raggeman was used by Langland as the name of a demon, and cf. Old French Ragamoffyn, name of a demon in a mystery play. Sense of "dirty, disreputable boy" is from 1580s. Cf. in the same sense ragabash (c.1600).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper