riffraff

See also: riff-raff

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Old French rif et raf (“one and all”), of Germanic origin. The first word is from rifler (“to scrape off”) and the last is from raffler, related to rafler (“to plunder”).

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈɹɪfɹæf/
  • Audio (Southern England):(file)

Noun

riffraff (usually uncountable, plural riffraffs)

  1. (informal, somewhat derogatory) The rabble; crowds; people of a low, disreputable or undesirable class or position.
    Synonyms: see Thesaurus:commonalty
    They started charging a modest fee in an effort to keep the riffraff out.
  2. (informal) Sweepings; refuse.

Derived terms

Translations

Further reading

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