Hypertext Webster Gateway: "ribald"
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Ribald \Rib"ald\, a.
Low; base; mean; filthy; obscene.
The busy day, Waked by the lark, hath roused the ribald
crows. --Shak.
From Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913) (web1913)
Ribald \Rib"ald\, n./ [OE. ribald, ribaud, F. ribaud, OF.
ribald, ribault, LL. ribaldus, of German origin; cf. OHG
hr[=i]pa prostitute. For the ending -ald cf. E. {Herald}.]
A low, vulgar, brutal, foul-mouthed wretch; a lewd fellow.
--Spenser. Pope.
Ribald was almost a class name in the feudal system . .
. He was his patron's parasite, bulldog, and tool . . .
It is not to be wondered at that the word rapidly
became a synonym for everything ruffianly and brutal.
--Earle.
From WordNet (r) 1.7 (wn)
ribald
adj : humorously vulgar; "bawdy songs"; "off-color jokes"; "ribald
language" [syn: {bawdy}, {off-color}]
n : a ribald person; someone who uses vulgar and offensive
language
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