Dictionary

ruffianism en · NOUN

Etymology

From ruffian + -ism.

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) The behaviour of a ruffian; ruffians collectively.
   • Each new comer was one more recruit to the ranks of ruffianism, and not a man penned in that reeking den of infamy but became a sworn hater of law, order, and “free-men.” 1874, Marcus Clarke, For the Term of his Natural Life, Penguin, published 2009, page 53:
   • A scrubby beard covered his face to the cheekbones, giving him an air of ruffianism that went oddly with his large weak frame and nervous movements. 1949, George Orwell, 1984, published 1949, page 242 (in Part III, Chapter I):

Forms