From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishruffianruf‧fi‧an /ˈrʌfiən/ noun [countable] old-fashionedVIOLENT a violent man, involved in crime a gang of ruffians —ruffianly adjective
Examples from the Corpus
ruffian• He ran away from the fearsome ruffian.• A gang of local ruffians was passing by and, when they saw what was happening, became infuriated against Richard Baxter.• It's run by that old ruffian, Chatterton.• Everyone who has one insists he has a weapon only to defend his family from outside ruffians.• Men who made passes at her were not rude ruffians but agents of evil river spirits.• Having savored victory, the ruffians moved on to attack the homes of well-known abolitionists in the neighborhood.• The three ruffians pummelled me, banging my head against the wooden slats.Origin ruffian (1400-1500) Old French 