rambunctious
adjective
Did you know?
Rambunctious first appeared in print in the early half of the 19th century, at a time when the fast-growing United States was forging its identity and indulging in a fashion for colorful new coinages suggestive of the young nation's optimism and exuberance. Rip-roaring, scalawag, scrumptious, hornswoggle, and skedaddle are other examples of the lively language of that era. Did Americans alter the largely British rumbustious because it sounded, well, British? That could be. Rumbustious, which first appeared in Britain in the late 1700s just after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, was probably based on robustious, a much older adjective meaning both "robust" and "boisterous."
Examples of rambunctious in a Sentence
Bethy Squires, Vulture, 5 Sep. 2025
Creative expression through drawing and painting is one constant from Brown's rambunctious youth that helped propel him forward to his present day occupation as the owner of Relic Supply Company, a tattoo shop in downtown Louisville.
—Olivia Evans, Louisville Courier Journal, 4 Sep. 2025
Prince Louis is… rambunctious and comical, while Princess Charlotte is calm, steady and very proper in every aspect of her demeanor.
—Stephanie Nolasco, FOXNews.com, 3 Sep. 2025
Bill gravitates towards Tammy (Jane Levy), his daughter-in-law and the only other person in his rambunctious household who values contemplation and repose.
—Jill Goldsmith, Deadline, 29 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for rambunctious
Cite this Entry
“Rambunctious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rambunctious. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
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rambunctious
adjective
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