ragman

American  

[rag-man, -muhn] / ˈrægˌmæn, -mən /

noun

ragmen plural

1. a person who gathers or deals in rag.

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ragman British  

/ ˈræɡˌmæn /

noun

1. another name for rag-and-bone man

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• ragmen
  plural

Etymology

Origin of ragman

First recorded in 1350–1400; rag ¹ + man

Example Sentences

“Even on Eagle Street, in the poorest section of town, where all the families were struggling, the ragman was on the lowest rung on the ladder,” Mr. Douglas wrote.

From New York Times • Feb. 5, 2020

One hundred years ago today, Douglas was born Issur Danielovitch, the son of a Moscow-born Russian Jewish ragman, in upstate New York.

From The Guardian • Dec. 9, 2016

“The coal being thrown down the chute for the radiators. The ragman on the street, calling out so we’d throw down old clothes.”

From New York Times • May 30, 2014

Feature film starring veteran Broadway actor Lou Gilbert in the story of an eccentric ragman on the Manhattan waterfront whose attempt to help an abandoned girl leads to his own destruction.

From Time Magazine Archive

Luck smiled on me the next day, and I managed to steal a bundle of rags off the back of a wagon and sell them to a ragman for four iron pennies.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss