1
as in villain
a mean, evil, or unprincipled person
the city's run-down waterfront was occupied mostly by disreputable places frequented by drunkards and rapscallions
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in monkey
an appealingly mischievous person
that little rapscallion kept hiding my shoes and making me go look for them
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 rapscallion
Imagine how Lowell’s most fun, most ferocious rock ‘n’ roll rapscallions will do Sabbath during their tribute set May 2 at the Smokehouse Tavern.
—
Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 26 Apr. 2026
Twin brothers, these rapscallions can be told apart by Boris’s kinked tail and the colors of their collars.
—Literary Hub, 10 Apr. 2026
Wade now will join the renegade row of coaches at LSU, which also employs football rapscallion Lane Kiffin and women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2026
Snoop Dogg, the rap rapscallion who puts the OG in Olympic Games, plopped down on a couch in the NBC green room and muted the TV.
—Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2026
Gods of Egypt is actually told from the point of view of a young rapscallion named Bek, played by Brenton Thwaites.
—Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Actual: When two rapscallion owners work together to stack a team with their best players, usually when one of the rat-bastards has been eliminated from the playoffs.
—Bill Reinhard, New York Daily News, 3 Aug. 2025
Korda has declared that, because his nine sons are, frankly, nincompoops and rapscallions, Liesl will be the sole heir to his fortune.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 24 May 2025
At the train station where Delta Slim performs, the rapscallion Stack reunites, uneasily, with old flame Mary (Hailee Steinfeld), who has been waiting a little too long for the charming dog who ditched her.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2025
Jed Gottlieb, Boston Herald, 26 Apr. 2026
Twin brothers, these rapscallions can be told apart by Boris’s kinked tail and the colors of their collars.
—Literary Hub, 10 Apr. 2026
Wade now will join the renegade row of coaches at LSU, which also employs football rapscallion Lane Kiffin and women’s basketball coach Kim Mulkey.
—Scott Fowler, Charlotte Observer, 27 Mar. 2026
Snoop Dogg, the rap rapscallion who puts the OG in Olympic Games, plopped down on a couch in the NBC green room and muted the TV.
—Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2026
Gods of Egypt is actually told from the point of view of a young rapscallion named Bek, played by Brenton Thwaites.
—Jordan Hoffman, EW.com, 12 Aug. 2025
Actual: When two rapscallion owners work together to stack a team with their best players, usually when one of the rat-bastards has been eliminated from the playoffs.
—Bill Reinhard, New York Daily News, 3 Aug. 2025
Korda has declared that, because his nine sons are, frankly, nincompoops and rapscallions, Liesl will be the sole heir to his fortune.
—David Fear, Rolling Stone, 24 May 2025
At the train station where Delta Slim performs, the rapscallion Stack reunites, uneasily, with old flame Mary (Hailee Steinfeld), who has been waiting a little too long for the charming dog who ditched her.
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 15 Apr. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for rapscallion
Noun
-
Her bone-chilling performance earned her the MTV Movie Award for best villain, beating out the likes of Daniel Day-Lewis, Mike Myers, Willem Dafoe and Colin Farrell in her category.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
17 June 2026
-
This was my villain origin story.—
Lauryn Overhultz,
FOXNews.com,
17 June 2026
Noun
-
Madonna hunts pheasant in the English countryside, Thomas Edison electrocutes an elephant, Harry Harlow conducts callous experiments on monkeys, and Jimmy Carter fends off a swamp rabbit attack.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 June 2026
-
Old world monkeys and humans harbor a natural antibody to a carbohydrate found on all the cells of pigs and other animals below primates on the evolutionary ladder.—
Joshua Mezrich,
STAT,
9 June 2026
Noun
-
Historically speaking, the Allied Supreme Commander wasn’t considered an angry brute so much as a steady diplomat who was capable of sudden, persuasive rage.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
26 May 2026
-
Even the consumer-level codes that encrypt your online banking are so hard to break that every computer on the planet working together would need longer than the age of the universe to brute-force them apart.—
David M. Ewalt,
Scientific American,
19 May 2026
Noun
-
But there are lots of potential devils in the details (otherwise there’d be little need for experimental reactors).—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
9 June 2026
-
The two vivid soloists were tenor Anthony León as the cocky troubadour and baritone Eleomar Cuello as the cocky devil.—
Classical Music Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
9 June 2026
Noun
-
The Tribune likened the spectacle to Veeck’s version of Frankenstein’s monster.—
Kori Rumore,
Chicago Tribune,
13 June 2026
-
With venom and shrewd determination, Nicholson paints his character as a swaggering monster who milks every syllable of his dialogue with vitriolic relish.—
Eric Farwell,
Entertainment Weekly,
12 June 2026
Noun
-
My mother was a total gem but also a bit of a rascal.—
Catherine Pearson,
New York Times,
8 May 2026
-
Right now, the rascal in him slumbers, briefly glimpsed now and again behind dark shades.—
Emma Madden,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Feb. 2026
Noun
-
An allegation last year by a provincial police commander that top officers and officials were colluding with organized criminals led Ramaphosa to announce a national investigation into police corruption.—
Michelle Gumede,
Los Angeles Times,
13 June 2026
-
Roman emperors, sometimes urged on by the crowd, were known to grant pardons (to criminals) and freedom (to the enslaved) after an especially noteworthy performance.—
Cullen Murphy,
The Atlantic,
13 June 2026
Noun
-
The offender fled in a red SUV in an unknown direction.—
Jeramie Bizzle,
CBS News,
14 June 2026
-
The program, which is likely to run in the afternoons or evenings, and would be open anyone looking to change careers, returning veterans and ex-offenders, Awwad said.—
Kenneth R. Gosselin,
Hartford Courant,
14 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Rapscallion.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rapscallion. Accessed 20 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
