riffraff

[rif-raf]

noun

1. people, or a group of people, regarded as disreputable or worthless.

   a pack of riffraff.

2. the lowest classes; rabble.

   the riffraff of the city.

3. trash; rubbish.

adjective

1. worthless, disreputable, or trashy.

riffraff

/ ˈrɪfˌræf /

noun

1. worthless people, esp collectively; rabble

2. dialect,  worthless rubbish

Word History and Origins

Origin of riffraff¹

1425–75; late Middle English rif and raf every particle, things of small value < Old French rif et raf, formed on rifler to spoil ( rifle ² ), raffler to ravage, snatch away

Word History and Origins

Origin of riffraff¹

C15 rif and raf , from Old French rif et raf ; related to rifler to plunder, and rafle a sweeping up; see _rifle ², _raffle

Example Sentences

The first half of the film finds our riffraff joining forces to escape Valentina’s death trap; the second is a parable about mental illness where the metaphors take command over the plot.

From Los Angeles Times

He has some friends — acquaintances, really — whom he hates, mentally labeling them “the riffraff, the vulgarians, the slobs.”

From New York Times

She associated Georgia’s capital city with “crime” and “riffraff,” similar to how Trump once disparaged Atlanta as “crime infested” and “falling apart.”

From Seattle Times

Just before the riots he had also responded to a rowdy reception committee in one banlieue by calling them racaille - riffraff.

From BBC

Indeed, this “savage,” as Shakespeare took pains to note in his complicated depiction of Caliban, is a good deal more civilized than the drunken riffraff with whom he falls into cahoots.

From Los Angeles Times