Tudor & Stuart · insult · noun
Rapscallion
rap-SKAL-yun /ræpˈskæljən/pronunciation given by a dictionary
First recorded1648
A rascal, rogue or scoundrel; a worthless, disreputable person. A fanciful stretching of 'rascal' (earlier 'rascallion').
Where it was first recorded
The British Bell-man (1648), per the current OED; Merriam-Webster also gives 1648; Etymonline dates this spelling to the 1690s.
Also spelled: rascallion, rabscallion, ramscallion
In its own time
Let us take an oath never to serve such rapscallions, and swear to it by the river Styx.
Today
Modern exampleThose rapscallions from next door have been stealing apples off our tree again.
Fine to use; now mostly playful, for a lovable rogue or a mischievous child.
Questions
What does rapscallion mean?
A rascal, rogue or scoundrel; a worthless, disreputable person. A fanciful stretching of 'rascal' (earlier 'rascallion').
When was rapscallion first used?
It is first recorded 1648 — The British Bell-man (1648), per the current OED; Merriam-Webster also gives 1648; Etymonline dates this spelling to the 1690s.
Can you still use rapscallion today?
Fine to use; now mostly playful, for a lovable rogue or a mischievous child.
Sources
- rapscallion — Merriam-Webster
- rapscallion — Online Etymology Dictionary
- Rapscallion — Farmer & Henley, Slang and Its Analogues, via WEHD
- rapscallion — Dictionary.com (Random House Unabridged)
- Hudibras — Samuel Butler (Project Gutenberg #4937)
- rapscallion (current OED, earliest evidence) — Oxford English Dictionary
Checked 2026-09-30 · verdict: attested — found in the dictionaries and texts listed above