rug rat

noun

plural rug rats
informal
: a young child
There is something about Christmas that requires a rug rat. Little kids make Christmas fun. I wonder if we could rent one for the holidays.Laurie Halse Anderson
An exciting career, a beautiful home, a second half as sexy as Ryan Reynolds, and eventually, some rug rats. This is the modern definition of having it all …Jessica Knoll
"Me, Gloria, and Savannah'll help you do everything but breast-feed the little rug rat when it's born."Terry McMillan

Examples of rug rat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Third row seats are best left for rug rats, or folded. cleveland, 22 Feb. 2020 Your standard maternal protagonist is not dropping a trail of pacifiers behind her, swilling goblets of red wine the minute her rug rats are in bed, and secretly vaping in the linen closet? Chloe Schama, Vogue, 14 May 2018

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rug rat.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1964, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of rug rat was in 1964

Dictionary Entries Near rug rat

Cite this Entry

“Rug rat.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rug%20rat. Accessed 15 Oct. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on rug rat

Last Updated: - Definition revised
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!