subs. (old).—1. Spec. the Devil: also OLD RUFFIAN. Whence (2) anyone behaving roughly or severely: as a magistrate, and esp. a pimp (see PONCE) or bawdy-house bully, ‘a brutal bully or assassin’ (B. E., ROWLANDS, COLES, GROSE), also a pugilist all spirit and no science; and so forth. Hence as adj. = (1) wanton (GROSE); (2) = brutal; and (3) = violent. As verb. = (1) to pimp, (2) to bully, and (3) to maul. Also RUFFIANLY (or RUFFINOUS) = wanton, outrageous. ‘RUFFIAN cook RUFFIAN, he scalded the devil in his feathers’ (GROSE), said of a bad cook. RUFFIAN’S-HALL (see quot. 1679). Cf. ROUGH.
c. 1450. York Plays [Shakespeare Society], i. 17 [T. L. KINGTON-OLIPHANT, The New English, i. 288. The Devil is spoken of as RUFFYNE, which perhaps led to our RUFFIAN].
d. 1556. UDALL [RICHARDSON]. Repent of light RUFFIANYNG and blasphemous carnal gospelling.
1567. HARMAN, A Caveat or Warening for Common Cursetors, 86. Gerry gan, the RUFFIAN clye thee. A torde in thy mouth, the deuyll take thee.
1593. G. HARVEY, Four Letters [Century]. RUFFIANLY hair, unseemly apparel, and more unseemly company.
1593. SHAKESPEARE, Comedy of Errors, ii. 2, 135.
| And that this body, consecrate to thee, | |
| By RUFFIAN lust should be contaminate! | |
| Ibid. (1598), 2 Henry IV., iii. 1, 22. | |
| And in the visitation of the winds, | |
| Who take the RUFFIAN billows by the top. | |
| Ibid., iv. 5, 125. | |
| Have you a RUFFIAN that will swear, drink, dance, | |
| Revel the night? | |
| Ibid. (1602), Othello, ii. 1. | |
| If it hath RUFFIAN’D so upon the sea, | |
| What ribs of oak, when mountains melt on them, | |
| Can hold the mortise? |
1598. FLORIO, A Worlde of Wordes, s.v. Ruffiano, a RUFFIN, a swagrer, a swashbuckler. Ibid., Ruffo, a RUFIAN, a ruffling roister;… also rude, RUFFE, or rough.
1603. CHAPMAN, Iliad, vi. 456.
| To shelter the sad monument from all the RUFFINOUS pride | |
| Of storms and tempests. |
1609. DEKKER, Lanthorne and Candlelight [GROSART, Wks. (1886), iii. 203]. The RUFFIN cly the nab of the Harmanbeck.
1622. FLETCHER, Beggar’s Bush, iii. 4. And harmanbecks trine, and trine to the RUFFIN! [justice of peace].
1657. H. SMITH, Sermons, 208. She could not … mince finer … nor carry more trappings about her, than our RUFFIANS and wantons do at this day.
d. 1679. BLOUNT [HALLIWELL]. RUFFIANS HALL.—So that part of Smithfield was antiently called, which is now the horse-market, where tryals of skill were plaid by ordinary RUFFIANLY people with sword and buckler.
1819. T. MOORE, Tom Crib’s Memorial to Congress, 57.
| And hammering right and left, with ponderous swing, | |
| RUFFIAN’D the reeling youngster round the Ring. |
1834. W. H. AINSWORTH, Rookwood, III. ii. ‘Not now, in the devil’s name!’ said Turpin, stamping impatiently. ‘We shall have OLD RUFFIN himself amongst us presently, if Peter Bradley grows gallant.’
