was wotd|2006|July|1
English
Etymology
From the w:Middle English language|Middle English Ragamuffyn.
Pronunciation
IPA|/�ræg��m�fɪn/
audio|en-us-ragamuffin.ogg|Audio (US)
Noun
en-noun
- A dirty, shabby|shabbily-clothed child; an urchin.
- (According to wikipedia:Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable|Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable): A muffin is a poor thing of a creature, a 'regular muff'; so that a ragamuffin is a sorry creature in rags.
Usage notes
:Currently this word is slang, used either for anachronism|anachronistic effect or as dialogue in wikipedia:historical fiction|historical fiction.
Quotations
timeline|
1500s=1597|
1800s=1868 1882|
1900s=1906 1916
1597 � w:William Shakespeare|William Shakespeare, s:The First Part of King Henry the Fourth|1 Hen IV v 3
:I have led my ragamuffins where they are peppered: there's not three of my hundred and fifty left alive; and they are for the town's end, to beg during life.
1868 � w:Louisa May Alcott|Louisa May Alcott, s:Little Women|Little Women, Ch. 47
:�But may I inquire how you intend to support the establishment? If all the pupils are little ragamuffins, I�m afraid your crop won�t be profitable in a worldly sense, Mr. Bhaer.�
1882 � w:Mark Twain|Mark Twain, s:The Prince and the Pauper|The Prince and the Pauper, Ch. 12
:'Yes, he is mine�I took him, a homeless little ragamuffin, but I saw what was in him, and I said his name would be heard some day�behold him, observe him�was I right?'
1906 � w:Upton Sinclair|Upton Sinclair, s:The Jungle|The Jungle, Ch. 18
:After walking a ways, Jurgis met a little ragamuffin whom he hailed: "Hey, sonny!"
1916 � w:John Buchan, 1st Baron Tweedsmuir|John Buchan, s:Greenmantle|Greenmantle, Ch. 15
:He had found out the house of Frau von Einem without much trouble, and had performed with his ragamuffins in the servants' quarters.
fr:ragamuffin
io:ragamuffin
ru:ragamuffin
te:ragamuffin
vi:ragamuffin
zh:ragamuffin
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