ruffmans en · NOUN
Etymology
From rough + -mans.
Meanings
-
(UK, obsolete, qualifier:thieves' cant, uncountable) Woods, hedges or bushes.
Happen we seen there was a damber in the ruffmans, and since we'd no yen t' deck the chates, we'd ha' binged a wast but for the rhino we was promised.
1994, Amanda Scott, Dangerous Illusions, →ISBN:Ben mort, shall you and I heave a bough, mill a ken, or nip a bung, and then we'll couch a hogshead under the ruffmans, and there you shall wap with me, and I'll niggle with you.
1611, Thomas Middleton, “The Roaring Girl”, in Arthur Henry Bullen, editor, The Works of Thomas Middleton, volume 4, published 1885, act 5, scene 1, pages 128–129:
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| ruffemans | alternative | lexicographic |