1
as in debris
discarded or useless material
the sight of piles and piles of riffraff at the town dump was a sobering reminder that we are indeed a society of consumers
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in rabble
people looked down upon as ignorant and of the lowest class
local ordinances that are intended to keep the riffraff out of the town
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 riffraff
Bypass the riffraff and turn your ideas into something concrete.
—
Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2024
William is ready for the task and has no intention of being killed by rebels or any other riffraff in the forests of Virginia.
—Lincee Ray, EW.com, 8 July 2023
There’s a gate topped with barbed wire to keep the riffraff out, and then long and winding stairs down to the sea.
—Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 13 Sep. 2023
Boba turned and scanned the alcoves again, ignoring the riffraff who stared at him, and raised his eyebrows at the sight of a familiar face.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 22 Aug. 2023
See All Example Sentences for riffraff
Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 18 Feb. 2024
William is ready for the task and has no intention of being killed by rebels or any other riffraff in the forests of Virginia.
—Lincee Ray, EW.com, 8 July 2023
There’s a gate topped with barbed wire to keep the riffraff out, and then long and winding stairs down to the sea.
—Stephen Rodrick, Variety, 13 Sep. 2023
Boba turned and scanned the alcoves again, ignoring the riffraff who stared at him, and raised his eyebrows at the sight of a familiar face.
—Brian Truitt, USA TODAY, 22 Aug. 2023
See All Example Sentences for riffraff
Recent Examples of Synonyms for riffraff
Noun
-
Fortunately, the lighter rainfall levels have decreased the risk of a debris flow taking place in the Eaton and Palisades fire burn scars, a possibility forecasters warned of Monday.—
Clara Harter,
Los Angeles Times,
4 June 2025
-
Remove brush and debris piles from around the home.—
Brayden Garcia,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 June 2025
Noun
-
There was little-to-no doubt Jurgen Klopp’s side were going to defeat Ralf Rangnick’s under-interim-management rabble that day.—
Carl Anka,
The Athletic,
4 Jan. 2025
-
Advertisement From start to finish, pure madness, amid a rabble that never calmed, never quieted, never quit.—
Bill Plaschke,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Oct. 2024
Noun
-
Allegiance The Resistance, led by General Leia Organa, regroups on the garbage planet Anoat, while Finn and Poe go on a secret mission to retrieve a weapons cache to increase their dwindling arsenal.—
Nick Romano,
EW.com,
25 May 2025
-
Duluth, Minnesota, has installed effective and unobtrusive signs at each beach entrance next to a garbage receptacle.—
John Michael Pierobon,
Sun Sentinel,
25 May 2025
Noun
-
Both of their remains are presumed to have been transported to Hawaii’s trash incinerator.—
Lesley Cosme Torres,
People.com,
6 June 2025
-
Your town may have a trash pickup walk, a Thanksgiving turkey trot or a stroll to historic sites.—
Elizabeth Passarella,
New York Times,
6 June 2025
Noun
-
In this case, the first task is to acquaint the local populace with the new part-owner and his significance before the franchise can capitalize on his worldwide stature in the sport.—
Jim Alexander,
Oc Register,
23 May 2025
-
Whether this research method is an adequate representation of the populace at large is an open question.—
Lance Eliot,
Forbes.com,
14 May 2025
Noun
-
The thin layer of Saharan dust that could limit Friday’s soaking will dissipate over the weekend, but the moisture should linger, Torres-Vasquez said.—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
30 May 2025
-
Thunderstorms could affect Arizona late Sunday and into Monday, and some gusty winds could contribute to blowing dust.—
Anna Skinner,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 May 2025
Noun
-
Typically, people should aim for 0.8 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight.—
Jillian Kubala,
Health,
2 June 2025
-
On Sunday, a Russian missile strike killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 60 at a training site for the Ukrainian military.—
Matthew Chance,
CNN Money,
2 June 2025
Noun
-
And there are the old pitfalls of the technology that anyone above a certain age remembers: blurry pages, junk faxes that pile up and faxes getting sent to the wrong number.—
Tamsin Gable,
Forbes.com,
4 June 2025
-
In 2018, inspired by this culture of bricolage, curator Danni Friedman and designer Jean Lee gathered a group of designers in Havana for a ten-day workshop, turning them loose in an old shipyard factory filled with clay, concrete mix, scrap metal, and assorted junk.—
Glenn Adamson,
Artforum,
1 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Riffraff.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/riffraff. Accessed 11 Jun. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share