Synonyms of rascal

rascal

noun

ˈra-skəl 

1

as in monkey

an appealingly mischievous person

you little rascal, I saw you snitching some hors d'oeuvres even though our guests haven't even arrived yet

Synonyms & Similar Words

• monkey
• devil
• scamp
• rogue
• rapscallion
• mischief
• brat
• urchin
• hellion
• imp
• ragamuffin
• madcap
• cutup
• nuisance
• juvenile delinquent
• disrupter
• larker
• gamin
• skylarker
• gamine
• misbehaver

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• snake
• clown
• heel
• skunk
• beast
• creep
• cur
• louse
• boor
• lout
• cad
• cretin
• joker
• stinker
• churl
• scoundrel
• villain
• knave
• reprobate
• miscreant
• scapegrace
• scalawag
• varlet
• stinkard

2

as in villain

a mean, evil, or unprincipled person

some cold-blooded rascal had set the barn afire

Synonyms & Similar Words

• villain
• brute
• monster
• devil
• savage
• criminal
• scoundrel
• offender
• wretch
• knave
• bandit
• beast
• scamp
• reprobate
• scapegrace
• scalawag
• rogue
• miscreant
• thug
• gangster
• assassin
• varlet
• caitiff
• crook
• hound
• no-good
• rapscallion
• fiend
• loser
• evildoer
• heavy
• nazi
• baddie
• meanie
• blackguard
• perpetrator
• snake
• felon
• trespasser
• culprit
• sinner
• lawbreaker
• ruffian
• desperado
• cad
• outlaw
• heel
• transgressor
• villainess
• perp
• viper
• serpent
• malefactor
• wrongdoer
• hoodlum
• con
• rough
• racketeer
• jailbird
• hooligan
• convict
• tough
• rowdy
• goon
• lowlife
• cutthroat
• bravo
• stinker
• gunman
• trash
• ne'er-do-well

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• innocent
• hero
• angel
• saint

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of rascal

In the years since 2004’s Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Penn’s carved out a niche embodying big-talking, attention-grabbing rascals who say inappropriate things, then shrug their way through the consequences. — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026

In a time when unemployment is on the rise and the rich are running amok and wreaking havoc on the poor — and the social services in place to support them — who doesn’t love the idea of rogue rascals sticking it to a bougie institution by running off with its crown jewels? — Kathleen Newman-Bremang, Refinery29, 12 Nov. 2025

The hilarious hijinks that ensue are centered on a rugby-playing rascal whose initial interests in pulling chicks and working get-rich-quick schemes give way to a lifelong love of writing poetry in the post-Soviet-occupation era of the 1990s. — Courtney Howard, Variety, 30 Oct. 2025

And Eli was, at times, a bit of a rascal. — David Kamp, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2025