street Arab
Appearance
See also: street-arab
English
[edit]Alternative forms
[edit]Etymology
[edit]So-called because they were nomadic, with no fixed home.
Noun
[edit]street Arab (plural street Arabs)
- (dated) A homeless child who roams the streets, usually begging for handouts; a street urchin.
- 1887, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet, section VI:
- ‘It's the Baker Street division of the detective police force,’ said my companion, gravely; and as he spoke there rushed into the room half a dozen of the dirtiest and most ragged street Arabs that ever I clapped eyes on.
Further reading
[edit]- “street Arab”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.