as in crass
lacking in refinement or good taste
the dowager cringed at the thought of raffish tourists in rough boots tromping all over her Persian rugs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of raffish
The sun was setting, leaving a band of neon orange clinging to the horizon; around us, raffish cliques sipped esoteric cocktails, shared platters of roast chicken, flitted between languages, and seemed, to my eyes, immune to worldly stress.
—
David Amsden, Travel + Leisure, 14 May 2024
The present headquarters of the Andy Warhol Factory are, despite the raffish image, surprisingly elegant and ordered: typewriters click, business machines whir, telephones ring and are answered by trim and efficient secretaries.
—Stephen Birmingham, Town & Country, 10 Aug. 2023
Indeed, weren’t these childish fantasies of escape, these raffish homages to crime flicks, already passé when the film was made five decades ago?
—Hazlitt, 2 Dec. 2022
Although Clodagh ignores the warnings of the General’s raffish agent Mr. Dean (Alessandro Nivola), isolation and illness soon take their toll, with the haunting atmosphere of the palace particularly affecting volatile Sister Ruth (Aisling Franciosi).
—Clark Collis, EW.com, 21 Sep. 2020
See All Example Sentences for raffish
David Amsden, Travel + Leisure, 14 May 2024
The present headquarters of the Andy Warhol Factory are, despite the raffish image, surprisingly elegant and ordered: typewriters click, business machines whir, telephones ring and are answered by trim and efficient secretaries.
—Stephen Birmingham, Town & Country, 10 Aug. 2023
Indeed, weren’t these childish fantasies of escape, these raffish homages to crime flicks, already passé when the film was made five decades ago?
—Hazlitt, 2 Dec. 2022
Although Clodagh ignores the warnings of the General’s raffish agent Mr. Dean (Alessandro Nivola), isolation and illness soon take their toll, with the haunting atmosphere of the palace particularly affecting volatile Sister Ruth (Aisling Franciosi).
—Clark Collis, EW.com, 21 Sep. 2020
See All Example Sentences for raffish
Recent Examples of Synonyms for raffish
Adjective
-
Each project presented at MIA is picked with a genuine desire for these works to come to the fore, not by crass commercial considerations.—
Nick Vivarelli,
Variety,
30 Sep. 2025
-
Free speech covers the jokes, the satire, the parodies—even the dumb, crass, or offensive ones.—
Lizz Winstead,
Time,
27 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Who decides what’s decorous and what’s vulgar?—
Adam Gopnik,
New Yorker,
25 Oct. 2025
-
The president has been targeting Jeffries online with offensive and vulgar memes since the pair first had an unsuccessful sit-down meeting in the Oval Office just before the shutdown.—
Zachary Schermele,
USA Today,
9 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Combined with not intervening too often, this will minimize the number of rude responses.—
Judith Martin,
Mercury News,
29 Oct. 2025
-
Basil, of course, is far from perfect, a rude, neurotic, accident-prone manager who insults guests, hides his gambling winnings from his wife and organizes an elaborate impersonation of her when his surprise anniversary party backfires.—
Rhett Bartlett,
HollywoodReporter,
28 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Short and/or fine hair sets faster than long, thick, coarse hair.—
BestReviews,
Mercury News,
29 Oct. 2025
-
Start with turbinado sugar, which has a coarse texture and a caramel-like flavor that complements coffee beautifully.—
Elizabeth Fogarty,
Better Homes & Gardens,
22 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The most common diagnoses included disorders in speech and motor function development and autism.—
Deidre McPhillips,
CNN Money,
31 Oct. 2025
-
But the most common way the demons attacked was by lulling their victims into sleep.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
31 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Big Oil leaders Exxon Mobil, Chevron, and Shell continue to hike their crude oil production volumes from West Texas’s Permian Basin to the Gulf of Mexico to deepwater Guyana despite concerns of a rising global oil glut as OPEC nations keep exporting more barrels each month.—
Jordan Blum,
Fortune,
31 Oct. 2025
-
Burke gave the only 9 on a panel full of 10s, prompting the crude call out.—
Ryan Coleman,
Entertainment Weekly,
30 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Raffish.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/raffish. Accessed 7 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share