Rabble-Rouser Is Always an Accusation
A rabble is a disorderly crowd. Calling someone a rabble-rouser is a judgement about their audience as much as them.
A rabble is a disorderly crowd. The word carries contempt for the people described, not just their behaviour, and *rabble-rouser* extends that contempt to whoever addresses them. Nobody describes themselves as a rabble-rouser; the term is always applied by opponents, and it implies the audience is easily led.
- A disorderly crowd. *An angry rabble.*
- The common people (derogatory). *The rabble at the gates.*
- Rabble-rouser — one who stirs up a crowd. *A dangerous rabble-rouser.*
Word forms
| Form | Word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun | rabble | A noisy rabble. |
| Compound | rabble-rouser | A rabble-rouser. |
| Related | mob | An angry mob. |
| Related | throng | A dense throng. |
| Related | demagogue | A skilled demagogue. |
How it is used in a sentence
- Nobody calls themselves a rabble-rouser.It is always an accusation.
- Mob is short for *mobile vulgus*.The fickle crowd.
- A demagogue leads the people.Literally, in Greek.
Words for a crowd
- Rabble — disorderly and contemptible
- Mob — from Latin *mobile vulgus*, the fickle crowd
- Throng — dense, without judgement
- Multitude — large, and formal
- Demagogue — a leader of the people, now always pejorative
Of uncertain origin, recorded from the fourteenth century, possibly imitative of confused noise.
Where does *mob* come from?
From the Latin phrase *mobile vulgus*, the fickle crowd, shortened in seventeenth-century English slang.
Is *demagogue* always negative?
In modern use, yes. In Greek it simply meant a leader of the people, without the implication of manipulation.