Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun Informal A reprobate; a rascal.
- noun A white Southerner working for or supporting the federal government during Reconstruction.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun An under-sized, scraggy, or ill-fed animal of little value.
- noun A worthless, good-for-nothing, or contemptible fellow; a scamp; a scapegrace.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun Slang, U.S. A scamp; a scapegrace.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun pejorative, US, archaic Any white
Southerner who supported the federal plan ofReconstruction after the Civil War or who joined with the blackfreedmen and thecarpetbaggers in support of Republican Party policies. - noun pejorative, archaic A
rascal . Alternative spelling ofscallywag .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun one who is playfully mischievous
- noun a deceitful and unreliable scoundrel
- noun a white Southerner who supported Reconstruction policies after the American Civil War (usually for self-interest)
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License
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Examples
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The scalawag was the native white man who made up the middle class of the South; the planter above, the Negro below.
History of the Negro Race in America from 1619 to 1880. Vol. 2 (of 2) Negroes as Slaves, as Soldiers, and as Citizens George Washington Williams
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A scalawag was a Southerner who deserted his political affiliations for the spoils of the Republican party.
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But certain it is that the enemy - authorities and 'scalawag' - friends, who now cruelly oppress the whites and elevate the negro over us - are hated as the ravaging armies never were, and a true union seems farther off than ever. "
Old times in Dixie land : a southern matron's memories, 1901
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A "scalawag" if as a Southern born man he votes with the Republicans; a "carpet-bagger" if he comes from the North, no matter how he votes.
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States of America after the war and during the period of reconstruction, he would have been designated, in the picturesque slang of the period, as a "scalawag"; for he not only deserted Napoleon in his final defeat and deepest woe, but joined his enemies, took office from the victors, perverted his public trust to private gain, and ended his career dishonored in the estimation of all true men.
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A "scalawag" was any Southern white who allied himself politically with the negroes, and a "carpet-bagger" was a Northern adventurer, for whose worldly goods a gripsack sufficed, -- or, in general, any Northerner whatever.
The Negro and the Nation A History of American Slavery and Enfranchisement George Spring Merriam 1878
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During that era, the term "scalawag" was used to refer to white Southerners who supported the federal government's actions in the region.
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Enna shot a fierce glance at him, muttering "scalawag," half under her breath, while his old father said testily, "Horace, you speak too strongly.
Elsie's Motherhood Martha Finley 1868
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You discover the words, “whippersnapper,” “scalawag” and “by-cracky” creeping into your vocabulary.
You Know You’re Over The Hill When… « You Got to be Kidding's Blog 2009
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“What are you prattling on about, you chatty old scalawag?”
Earl of Durkness Alix Rickloff 2011
bilby commented on the word scalawag
See also scallywag.
April 26, 2008
bilby commented on the word scalawag
See also scallywag.
April 26, 2008