scalawag

especially British, scal·ly·wag

[skal-uh-wag]

noun

1. a scamp; rascal.

2. U.S. History.,  a native white Southerner who collaborated with the occupying forces during Reconstruction, often for personal gain.

scalawag

/ ˈskæləˌwæɡ /

noun

1. a variant of scallywag

Other Word Forms

• scalawaggery noun
• scalawaggy adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of scalawag¹

An Americanism dating back to 1840–50; origin uncertain

Example Sentences

That means pillaging merchant ships, battling rival scalawags, dodging the authorities and even surviving the occasional sea monster on your way to becoming the Pirate Kingpin.

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“Nobody wants to see the pirates take over the city,” Castor told the pirates, whom she dubbed “scalawags.”

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Chadha-Patel is ambiguously charming as a scalawag not entirely out for himself.

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So, I kind of am the scalawag at Joni’s and the girl that plays Madison Square Garden in the trails, too.

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In this telling, Black Americans were dismissed as unprepared for the tasks of self-government and cast as props for regimes dominated by northern “carpetbaggers” and southern “scalawags.”

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