rabble

¹

[rab-uhl]

noun

1. a disorderly crowd; mob.

2. the rabble, the lower classes; the common people.

   The nobility held the rabble in complete contempt.

verb (used with object)

rabbled, rabbling 

1. to beset as a rabble does; mob.

rabble

²

[rab-uhl]

noun

1. a tool or mechanically operated device used for stirring or mixing a charge in a roasting furnace.

verb (used with object)

rabbled, rabbling 

1. to stir (a charge) in a roasting furnace.

rabble

¹

/ ˈræbəl /

noun

1. a disorderly crowd; mob

2. derogatory,  the common people

rabble

²

/ ˈræbəl /

noun

1. Also called: rabbler. an iron tool or mechanical device for stirring, mixing, or skimming a molten charge in a roasting furnace

verb

1. (tr) to stir, mix, or skim (the molten charge) in a roasting furnace

Other Word Forms

• rabbler noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of rabble¹

1350–1400; Middle English rabel (noun), of uncertain origin

Origin of rabble²

1655–65; < French râble fire-shovel, tool, Middle French raable < Latin rutābulum implement for shifting hot coals, equivalent to *rutā ( re ) presumed frequentative of ruere to churn up, disturb + -bulum suffix of instrument

Word History and Origins

Origin of rabble¹

C14 (in the sense: a pack of animals): of uncertain origin; perhaps related to Middle Dutch rabbelen to chatter, rattle

Origin of rabble²

C17: from French râble , from Latin rutābulum rake for a furnace, from ruere to rake, dig up

Example Sentences

A Labour councillor had been "rabble rousing" a crowd which could have turned violent when he called for far-right protesters to have their throats cut, a court has heard.

From BBC

The rest of the set balanced her competing impulses: rock chick, singer-songwriter, rabble rouser, strident feminist, heartfelt balladeer.

From BBC

It obviously can’t be proven that there has been some sort of conspiracy to legalize pot to keep the rabble happy and more or less under control.

From Salon

With “one black, one white, one blonde,” as the show’s tagline, “the rabble on the wrong side of the law was now the law,” said television critic Lorraine Ali in 2018.

From Los Angeles Times

Gaetz, 42, is a lawyer who made a name for himself on Capitol Hill and cable news as a right-wing rabble rouser.

From BBC