rascal
/ˈɹæskl̩/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.07 in modern English
8
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
2
Syllables
5
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A cheeky person or creature; a troublemaker.
name
A surname.
Example Sentences
- "Tuc[ca]. […] Can thy Author doe it impudently enough? / Hiſt[rio]. O, I warrant you, Captaine: and ſpitefully inough too; he ha's one of the moſt ouerflowing villanous wits, in Rome. He will ſlander any man that breathes; If he diſguſt him. / Tucca. I'le know the poor, egregious, nitty Raſcall; and he haue ſuch commendable Qualities, I'le cheriſh him: […]"
- "And he smote Corinius on his shaven jowl with the dice box, calling him cheat and mangy rascal, whereupon Corinius drew forth a bodkin to smite him in the neck withal; […]"
- "That little rascal bit me!"
- "If you have deer in the area, you may have to put a fence around your garden to keep the rascals out."
Etymology
Recorded since c.1330, as Middle English rascaile (“people of the lowest class, rabble of an army”), derived from 12th century Old French rascaille (“outcast, rabble”) (modern French racaille), perhaps from rasque (“mud, filth, scab, dregs”), from Vulgar Latin *rasicō (“to scrape”). The singular form is first attested in 1461; the present extended sense of "low, dishonest person" is from early 1586.
Origin
Word Breakdown
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈɹæskl̩/
- British English: /ˈɹɑːskl̩/