ragman
Appearance
See also: Ragman
English
[edit]Etymology 1
[edit]Noun
[edit]ragman (plural ragmen)
- A person who collects and sells unwanted household items such as rags and other refuse for a living, a rag and bone man.
- 1918, Norman Lindsay, The Magic Pudding, page 14:
- For travellers have to carry bags, / And swagmen have to hump their swags / Like bottle-ohs or ragmen.
- 1966, Bob Dylan (lyrics and music), “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again”, in Blonde on Blonde:
- Oh, the ragman draws circles / Up and down the block / I'd ask him what the matter was / But I know that he don't talk
Translations
[edit]collector of refuse
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Etymology 2
[edit]Unknown.
Noun
[edit]ragman (countable and uncountable, plural ragmans)
- (historical) A statute issued by Edward I in 1276.
- (obsolete) A document having many names or seals, such as a papal bull.
- c. 1390, William Langland, Piers Plowman, Prologue:
- He bonched hem with his breuet · & blered here eyes / And rauȝte with his ragman · rynges and broches […]
- (historical, uncountable) A game in which players compete to pull an object from out of a roll of writing.