raff

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"And yon riff-raff, his spitten picter, is no'but some wastrel merry-begot."

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Definitions (9)

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  1. To sweep; snatch, draw, or huddle together; take by a promiscuous sweep. Their causes and effects … I thus raffe vp together. R. Carew, Survey of Cornwall, fol. 69.
  2. A promiscuous heap or collection; a jumble; a medley. [Obsolete or archaic] The synod of Trent was convened to settle a raff of errors and superstitions. Barrow, Unity of the church.
  3. Trashy material; lumber; rubbish; refuse. [Old and prov. Eng.] And maken of the rym and raf Suche gylours for pompe and pride. Appendix to W. Mapes, p. 340. (Halliwell.) Let raffs be rife in prose and rhyme, We lack not rhymes and reasons, As on this whirligig of Time We circle with the seasons. Tennyson, Will Waterproof.
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Examples (50)

  • The rest of the riff-raff, as you depict them, seem to me to be small villains, stirring up trouble to see if they can force or frighten someone else into making an informative move. —  Cargo of Eagles - Margery Allingham - Campion 21: 1968
  • Fashion Week this year will just be full of commoners and riff-raff, because people are Yea, they thought it was so cool to hang out and take bong hits with Olympic champ Harry Knowles of Ain't It Cool News, desperate to be the fanboy in The English Continue To Pile On Probable Oscar-Winner Kate Winslet Martha Stewart recently had one of her favoritest florists, —  Gawker
  • Despite the wailing of Muslim apologists and civil libertarian riff-raff, Yee was simply not prosecuted despite voluminous evidence.
  • Adding to the comedy riff-raff is Thomas Lennon as Ned Gold, Mike's best friend and confidant, who has the Star Wars land-speeder as a bed. —  PegasusNews.com stories
  • Fashion Week this year will just be full of commoners and riff-raff, because people are Yea, they thought it was so cool to hang out and take bong hits with Olympic champ The English Continue To Pile On Probable Oscar-Winner Kate Winslet Martha Stewart recently had one of her favoritest florists, —  Gawker
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Etymologies (2)

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (2)

  1. from Old French raffer, rafer, catch, snatch, slip away, = Italian *raffare, in comp. arraffare, snatch, seize, = Middle High German raffen, reffen, German raffen, snatch, sweep away, carry off suddenly, = MLG, Low German rapen, snatch, = Swedish rappa, snatch, seize, = Danish rappe, hasten: see rap, from the Scandinavian form cognate with the G. Hence nlt. raffle.
  2. from Middle English raffe, raf, especially in the phrase rif and raf (now riffraff), from Old French rif et raf, every bit, in which raf is due to the verb raffer, snatch: see raff, v. Cf. riffraff. Cf. Italian raffola, a crowd, press.
 

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