ragamuffin

noun

Definition of ragamuffinnext
as in hobo
somewhat old-fashioned a child who is dressed in rags and is usually dirty and poor a group of barefoot ragamuffins playing in the street

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of ragamuffin The Moser family — Lubo, his wife and three cheerfully ragamuffin little kids — are a troupe of travelling performers who earn their keep putting on shows in the local towns. — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 7 Sep. 2023 The young ragamuffin helped turn corrido tumbado into a global chart-topper (and moneymaker) and proved that Latin American artists don’t have to compromise to reach that level of acclaim. — Pitchfork, 13 Dec. 2023 Playing out on a New Orleans street set designed more or less as a cartoon by David Rockwell, its pirates costumed by Linda Cho in ragamuffin seafaring garb that nonetheless allows for the odd pleasing splash of color, Pirates! — Greg Evans, Deadline, 24 Apr. 2025 The reunion between ragamuffin Georgie and boyish Jason also recalls Peter Bogdanovich’s Paper Moon from 50 years ago, a movie set during the Great Depression, an exercise in nostalgia. — Armond White, National Review, 30 Aug. 2023 See All Example Sentences for ragamuffin
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ragamuffin
  1. hobo
  2. beggar
  3. tramp
  4. waif
  5. urchin
Noun
  • Per usual with movies like this, spelling out the terror (the roots are in hobo codes and religious legend) becomes, regrettably, a shock absorber, not a facilitator.
    — Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2026
  • Schneider plays David, a reticent young man with the soulful-hobo air of a Beat poet, who makes a living as an events photographer but whose private passion is a secretive lifelong project, inherited from his father, documenting the changing Parisian suburbs.
    — Jessica Kiang, Variety, 18 May 2026
Definition of hobo
Noun
  • Gobert was chief among the beggars imploring his teammates for a shred of consistency on that end of the floor.
    — Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 27 Apr. 2026
  • So disguised as a beggar, Odysseus shows up at his palace, and he is not treated very nicely by the suitors who have camped out in his house.
    — Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 9 Mar. 2026
Definition of beggar
Noun
  • Plus, the police are looking for a tramp (David Wilmot) who lives in the forest nearby, and may know something about what happened to her.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 30 Apr. 2026
  • More than half a century into his imposingly prolific, restlessly searching career as a songwriter, Springsteen has fulfilled the prophecy he was born into as a young tramp.
    — New York Times, New York Times, 28 Apr. 2026
Definition of tramp
Noun
  • Everyone was chasing a waif look.
    — Michelle Lee, PEOPLE, 22 Apr. 2026
  • More like a woman who had written a book and less like a lost waif.
    — Allegra Goodman, Vogue, 12 Feb. 2026
Definition of waif
Noun
  • The emotional stakes — which also involve a thieving street urchin (Baltasar Espinach) the De la Vegas adopt — are real.
    — Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 30 June 2026
  • Tom loves Rhoda’s pairing of sweet potato and urchin, calling it something genuinely new.
    — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 9 June 2026
Definition of urchin

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“Ragamuffin.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ragamuffin. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on ragamuffin

Nglish: Translation of ragamuffin for Spanish Speakers

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