How to Use raffish in a Sentence

raffish

adjective
Definition of raffishnext
Synonyms for raffishnext
  • Brighton, a resort on the south coast, is well known as a raffish, radical place.
    — Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 10 Jan. 2020
  • Hinckley, who is twenty-nine, had a blond cascade of hair, round glasses, and a short, raffish beard.
    — Nathan Heller, The New Yorker, 15 May 2017
  • The students, raffish blue bloods, wear a uniform of chic navy with scarlet piping.
    — Taylor Antrim, Vogue, 2 Oct. 2018
  • But McConaughey has a raffish charm that makes such high jinks forgivable.
    — Steve Chapman, chicagotribune.com, 21 Apr. 2021
  • Kevin, an Englishman living in Marseille, agreed to meet with the young Helder, who hoped to learn a few secrets of the trade from a master with a raffish reputation.
    — Los Angeles Times, 13 Dec. 2020
  • His descriptions of the New York City of that era, and of the show-business personalities the twins met (including Barnum), are raffish and vivid.
    — Melanie Benjamin, WSJ, 12 Apr. 2018
  • Young Lendrum’s prowess earned him a raffish preeminence among his peers.
    — Dennis Drabelle, Washington Post, 25 Feb. 2020
  • Max Hardberger, a raffish oceanic repo man, stars in Urbina’s heist story.
    — Alyssa Rosenberg, Washington Post, 12 Sep. 2019
  • Christopher Burchett’s Macheath deftly combined menace and raffish charm.
    — Jeremy Eichler, BostonGlobe.com, 20 Mar. 2018
  • Huggins is now seen as a raffish college basketball raconteur, not an outlaw.
    — Christopher L. Gasper, BostonGlobe.com, 22 Mar. 2018
  • The book moves from Johnny’s experiences in raffish 1970s London to the city’s turn-of-the-millennium rave scene to his social life after the arrival of dating apps like Grindr, which turn out to be a boon for old as well as young men.
    — Dwight Garner, New York Times, 12 Mar. 2018
  • In the documentary, Ledger’s best friend Trevor Di Carlo accompanies him on all his filming escapades, snapping rare images of the raffish star in his downtime.
    — Yohana Desta, VanityFair.com, 4 May 2017
  • Theo Gibson — a cynical, chain-smoking bachelor who cut a raffish figure on Leverett’s campus — looms over those years.
    — New York Times, 5 Apr. 2022
  • The second is Jeremy Irons’ suave and subtle portrayal of James Tyrone — one consummate actor stepping into the raffish skin of another.
    — Matt Cooper, latimes.com, 22 June 2018
  • These raffish characters make no bones about having chosen one another, starting with grandma, who chose the whole bunch as an insurance policy against a lonely death.
    — Joe Morgenstern, WSJ, 22 Nov. 2018
  • He is frequently spotted partying hard in fancy nightclubs across London, flashing a raffish grin.
    — Sarah Lyall, Town & Country, 8 Jan. 2013
  • Stevens begins his account with an introduction to his ancestors, all of whom were show people in the gloriously raffish tradition.
    — Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 17 June 2022
  • A security officer, who’d paid no attention to Mitrovich, came up to inquire what this raffish character was carrying in his bag.
    — Logan Jenkins, sandiegouniontribune.com, 22 June 2017
  • The show is raffish, quirky, whip-smart, defiantly non-commercial, and totally unafraid to offend, especially from the left side of the political spectrum.
    — Joey Morona, cleveland.com, 21 Apr. 2018
  • Sharif’s raffish looks and onscreen charisma quickly earned him leading roles, including the titular part in Doctor Zhivago, which earned him an Oscar nomination.
    — Laignee Barron, Time, 10 Apr. 2018
  • The best emerging writers metaphorically reject their domineering parents and gravitate to their raffish uncles and outcast aunts.
    — Michael Dirda, Washington Post, 16 Oct. 2019
  • Istanbul is both ancient and contemporary, elegant and raffish, traditional and innovative, and very multicultural, especially as related to art, cuisine, lifestyle, and commerce.
    — Karen Fedorko Sefer, Town & Country, 5 Oct. 2016

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'raffish.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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