badman
badman Lexical Profile
badman Game Scores & Validity
• noun
British A tough, aggressive, or intimidating male criminal or gang member; by extension, a formidable, respected, or streetwise man (originally in Jamaican English and later British urban slang).
"The young actor gained fame for playing a ruthless badman in the gritty London crime drama."
American An outlaw, gunfighter, or desperado of the historical American Old West.
"Tales of the notorious badman and his daring train robberies became part of frontier folklore."
Word Nuance & Usage
In Jamaican Patois and British Multicultural London English (MLE), 'badman' can be used either literally to describe a dangerous gang member or admiringly to describe someone who is tough, respected, or formidable.
• Rhymes for badman
Word Origin & Etymology
Formed as a closed compound of 'bad' and 'man'; attested in 19th-century American frontier slang for an outlaw and later popularized in Jamaican Patois and British urban slang.