Scaramouch

American  

[skar-uh-mouch, -moosh] / ˈskær əˌmaʊtʃ, -ˌmuʃ /

Or Scaramouche

noun

1. a stock character in commedia dell'arte and farce who is a cowardly braggart, easily beaten and frightened.

2. (lowercase) a rascal or scamp.

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Scaramouch British  

/ -ˌmuːtʃ, ˈskærəˌmaʊtʃ /

noun

1. a stock character who appears as a boastful coward in commedia dell'arte and farce

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Etymology

Origin of Scaramouch

First recorded in 1662; from French Scaramouche, from Italian Scaramuccia, proper noun use of scaramuccia “skirmish” (applied in jest); skirmish ( def. )

Example Sentences

Various gay masqueraders, interrupted by return of the Doctor, are carried by Scaramouch behind the curtain.

From The Spectator, Volume 1 Eighteenth-Century Periodical Essays by Addison, Joseph

Presently the curtain is drawn up and discovers where Scaramouch has   'plac'd them all in the Hanging in which they make the Figures, where   they stand without Motion in Postures.'

From The Spectator, Volume 1 Eighteenth-Century Periodical Essays by Addison, Joseph

Pasquariel comes gently behind him, and taps time on his shoulders—this throws Scaramouch into a panic.

From Curiosities of Literature, Vol. 2 by Disraeli, Isaac

A gaudy Harlequin and his brother Scaramouch invite the attention of the passers-by.

From A History of the Four Georges, Volume I by McCarthy, Justin

Besides these, there was also a comic drama, in which some personages not unlike punch and his wife, Bandemeer and Scaramouch performed capital parts.

From Travels in China, Containing Descriptions, Observations, and Comparisons, Made and Collected in the Course of a Short Residence at the Imperial Palace of Yuen-Min-Yuen, and on a Subsequent Journey through the Country from Pekin to Canton by Barrow, John, Sir