RASCAL Synonyms: 106 Similar and Opposite Words

rascal

noun

ˈra-skəl

Definition of rascal

as in monkey

an appealingly mischievous person you little rascal, I saw you snitching some hors d'oeuvres even though our guests haven't even arrived yet

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in villain

a mean, evil, or unprincipled person some cold-blooded rascal had set the barn afire

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of rascal Of all the former rascals, Symoné has enjoyed the longest and most successful career in entertainment. — Andrew Walsh, Entertainment Weekly, 30 Jan. 2026 In the years since 2004’s Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, Penn’s carved out a niche embodying big-talking, attention-grabbing rascals who say inappropriate things, then shrug their way through the consequences. — Roxana Hadadi, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026 In a time when unemployment is on the rise and the rich are running amok and wreaking havoc on the poor — and the social services in place to support them — who doesn’t love the idea of rogue rascals sticking it to a bougie institution by running off with its crown jewels? — Kathleen Newman-Bremang, Refinery29, 12 Nov. 2025 The hilarious hijinks that ensue are centered on a rugby-playing rascal whose initial interests in pulling chicks and working get-rich-quick schemes give way to a lifelong love of writing poetry in the post-Soviet-occupation era of the 1990s. — Courtney Howard, Variety, 30 Oct. 2025 See All Example Sentences for rascal

Recent Examples of Synonyms for rascal

Noun

Many cinematic Hanumans The divine monkey Hanuman is one of the most beloved Ramayana characters.

— Sohini Sarah Pillai, The Conversation, 14 Oct. 2026
The team simply has to get the monkey off their back in order to advance in the postseason.

— OutKick, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of monkey

Noun

Rival fans were quick to jump all over this fact, given that both the Panthers and the Tkachuk brothers were seen as polarizing villains throughout the NHL.

— Austin Perry OutKick, FOXNews.com, 16 Oct. 2026
Is that the most difficult thing for you as the showrunner of a political show today — a president as a villain?

— Yvonne Villarreal, Los Angeles Times, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of villain

Noun

Most sportsmen wonder how any whitetail bucks, let alone a brute such as Kontras’, could have been so easily patterned.

— Jeff Murray, Outdoor Life, 20 Aug. 2026
The show’s depiction of Hugh as a family man has been much more sympathetic than the book’s description of him as a power-hungry brute.

— James Grebey, Vulture, 10 Aug. 2026

Definition of brute

Noun

Diagnose the monster before deciding which mind and which move are required to outwit it.

— Jeff DeGraff, Fortune, 17 Oct. 2026
That led him to snowy Deadwood, South Dakota, and a turn as local guide Gil Jackson in the horror heist movie Beast From Haunted Cave (1959), produced by Roger’s brother, Gene Corman, and featuring Chris Robinson as the monster.

— Mike Barnes, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of monster

Noun

Perhaps if it had been marketed as a quirky arthouse film, critical expectations might have been tempered and the naysayers’ assessments a bit less savage.

— Jennifer Ouellette, ArsTechnica, 7 Oct. 2026
The Danish director’s Pusher trilogy (which was restored and rereleased last year) had been handheld, hyperrealistic, and savage; Drive, on the other hand, was ethereal and moody, its characters submerged, their delivery precise.

— Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of savage

Noun

That same month, criminals nabbed a $4 million diamond necklace from Vienna’s Museum of Applied Arts (MAK).

— Lianne Kolirin, CNN Money, 16 Oct. 2026
For decades, Hollywood actor Danny Trejo’s bread and butter was playing gangsters, prison inmates and other assorted criminals.

— Corky Siemaszko, NBC news, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of criminal

Noun

There’s been bestselling books, podcasts, an Alex Gibney documentary, and an Emmy-winning series featuring Amanda Seyfried as the Silicon Valley scoundrel.

— Brent Lang, IndieWire, 16 Oct. 2026
Meanwhile, Frank Dillane plays Willoughby, Marianne’s love interest, with such commitment that the actor was surprised to learn his character is universally acknowledged to be a scoundrel.

— Rebecca Mead, New Yorker, 21 Sep. 2026

Definition of scoundrel

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rarity

rascal

rascality

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Style

“Rascal.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/rascal. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of rascal

noun

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