Words at Play : 22 Charming Words for Nasty People
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#1: Ruffian

Definition:

a brutal person; bully

Examples:

"'You try me too much. A ruffian – a common brawling ruffian – that's what you have become.'" – Arthur Conan Doyle, The Lost World, 1912

"Tintin always moves (unless he's been knocked out by some ruffian). Motion is his appeal and the reason Steven Spielberg's representation rings true." – Matt Easton, The Michigan Daily, January 4, 2012

About the Word:

Ruffians specialize in roughness, and between the 16th and 18th centuries, they were also synonymous with pimps – men who solicit clients for prostitutes.

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