scalawag

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. A disreputable fellow, a good-for-nothing, a scapegrace, a blackguard.
  2. A badly behaved person, especially a child; a mischief-maker; a rascal.
  3. A scrawny cow.
  4. Any white Southerner who supported the federal plan of Reconstruction after the American Civil War or who joined with the black freedmen and the carpetbaggers in support of Republican Party policies.
  5. rogue police; rogue military personnel

Word forms

scalawag scalawags scallawag scalliwag scallywag skalawag

Etymology

Of obscure origin, perhaps from the name of the Shetland village of Scalloway (from Old Norse Skálavágr), known for its dwarf ponies and dwarf cattle.

Derived words

This entry uses open data from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA/GFDL). Word forms are used for search and are not indexed as separate pages.