rag v.1
1. in senses of verbal or physical harassment [despite chronology, presumably link to rag n.1 (3b); ? abbr. bullyrag v.] .
(a) to scold, to talk severely to.
Sessions Papers June cited in DSUE (1984) 955/1: On Monday night Bird and Clark came to their House to ragg (scold) her Grandfather for what he had talk’d of concerning them. | ||
Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue ms. additions n.p.: to Rag, to Scold, or give abusive Language. She gave him a good Ragging or Ragged him off Heartily. Perhaps from tearing his Character to Rags. | ||
, | Classical Dict. of the Vulgar Tongue (2nd, 3rd edn) n.p.: To Rag. To abuse, and tear to rags the characters of the persons abused. She gave him a good ragging, or ragged him off heartily. | |
Pettyfogger Dramatized II i: He ragged me confoundedly, and, to be sure, I deserved it. | ||
Lex. Balatronicum. | ||
Dict. of the Turf, the Ring, the Chase, etc. | ||
Modern Flash Dict. | ||
Flash Dict. in Sinks of London Laid Open. | ||
Vocabulum 72: ragged Abused; slandered. | ||
Vice Versa (1931) 257: You’re right there, sir, [...] he ought to be well ragged for it . | ||
Many Inventions [TBD]: The captain had come up anf was raggin’ me about my tunic bein’ tore. | ‘His Private Honour’ in||
Chimmie Fadden and Mr Paul 103: [She] cops us. My, my! But she ragged us good. | ||
Harrovians 16: He thinks he can rag you as much as he likes when you can’t answer back. | ||
Inimitable Jeeves 84: She’s the kind of woman who comes and rags you before breakfast. | ||
Free To Love 15: Now see here, Kit, if your gonna rag me – can’t stan’ – it. | ||
End as a Man (1952) 143: He was going to be here at nine. To rag you for writing me a dirty letter. | ||
Complete Molesworth (1985) 351: He is a perfect gent [...] and I would never dreme of ragging him. | ||
CUSS 180: Angry. Constantly complaining and irritable. | et al.||
(con. 1967) Welcome to Vietnam (1989) 52: I don’t think I could take some cocksucker hovering over me like that, ragging at me about my every move. | ||
Homeboy 208: Shitefire, she ragged herself, you’ve heard enough men protest no strings. | ||
Midnight Lightning 35: He [...] never tired of ragging younger players, and even Eric Clapton, about the heresy of inadequate rhythm guitar skills. |
(b) (also rag on) to annoy, to tease (esp. in context of school or university).
Man o’ War’s Man (1843) 248: Truce with your ragging, Dick [...] I’m not in the humour at all. | ||
Four Years at Yale 46: Rag, to overcome and entirely use up an opponent or rival. | ||
N&Q Ser. 7 VI 38: To rag a man is good Lincolnshire for chaff or tease [F&H]. | ||
Sporting Gaz. (London) 12 Aug. 1002/1: Fortunately [...] we rarely hear sweet young girls talk about being ‘beastly jolly hungry,’ or [...] ‘it’s all jolly fine you men ragging me’. | ||
Mop Fair 170: He so ragged the bear that it shouted, ‘Aisy, Mick, yue something fool!’. | ||
Lighter Side of School Life 98: They will not dare to rag a prefect. | ||
Madcap of the School 11: ‘You needn’t look so incredulous. I’m not ragging’. | ||
Jim Maitland (1953) 74: You’ve got guts; you’ve got nerve, and I want to apologise here and now for ragging you. | ||
(con. WWI) Wings on My Feet 21: Well, boys pulled him up but sho’ did rag life out of ’im. | ||
Family from One End Street 18: She got ragged as it was now she’d begun to go to school. | ||
Capt. Bulldog Drummond 105: Yours very sincerely [...] makes up his mind to rag the stand-offish Drummond. | ||
Jennings Goes To School 67: Mr. Wilkins could not stand being ragged. | ||
Diaries 2 Jan. 205: I was ragging Bett M[arsden] a lot, and felt v. guilty after. | ||
North Dallas Forty 203: I loved to rag him. | ||
G’DAY 44: Darlene is nine months gone, and Mr Foster is [...] really dirty on her for getting preggers and all his mates are ragging him about it. | ||
Totally True Diaries of an Eighties Roller Queen 🌐 30 Apr. Kerrie wasn’t at school today and Gary was really ragging. Sometimes he can be a real prick. | ||
Sweet La-La Land (1999) 97: Otherwise he’d get on his ass and start ragging him and making small of him. | ||
(con. 1964-65) Sex and Thugs and Rock ’n’ Roll 265: Bluey would rag Tony endlessly. | ||
Mad mag. Dec. 35: Think I want to see those fat, bald losers? I would. It’d be fun to rag on ’em. | ||
Sun. Times (London) 16 Oct. 🌐 Seventy years later he watches ‘loutish Tories’ ragging Jeremy Corbyn in the House of Commons. | ||
Rough Trade [ebook] ‘[W]e’re not consciously ragging on gay people when we use those words?’. | ||
(con. 1962) Enchanters 126: Marilyn [...] ragged on your [i.e. Elizabeth Taylor’s] fat ass on a near-daily basis. |
(c) to attack, to cause trouble; in context, to rob.
DN II:i 54: rag, v. To steal. | ‘College Words and Phrases’ in||
Awaydays 11: Everyone seems pretty intent on ragging the town come what may. [Ibid.] 42: They’d stayed on the train until Stoke and ragged the shops in Hanley. | ||
Outlaws (ms.) 90: We got together afterwards and ragged them. |
(d) (US campus) to talk nonsense.
DN II:i 54: rag, v. To talk nonsense. | ‘College Words and Phrases’ in
(e) to fight, to beat up; to manhandle.
Gem 18 Nov. 27: Tom Merry faced the raggers. ‘Before you rag him, you’ll have to rag me!’ he said. | ||
Urban Grimshaw 58: She kicked Tyson across the room and ragged the kids off the pile, one by one. | ||
Kimberly’s Capital Punishment (2023) 490: [F]ighting each other for the right to rag my arsehole. |
(f) (UK juv.) to create disorder.
Harrovians 47: They give privs to understand that they can rag mildly if only they stop other blokes. |
(g) to argue over a topic, to wrangle.
(con. 1910s) Studs Lonigan (1936) 119: She was tired of sitting down to a Sunday dinner and being forced to listen to this interminable ragging. | Young Lonigan in
(h) (US) to gossip.
Queens’ Vernacular 167: rag [...] 3. (fr colloq chew the rag) to gossip, criticize, speak badly of one absent. | ||
Random Family 50: Miranda and another worker were ragging about George’s predilection for expensive silk shirts. |
(i) to complain.
Campus Sl. Fall 5: rag – to complain bitterly. | ||
Online Sl. Dict. 🌐 rag v [...] 3. to complain. (‘Stop ragging about that!’). |
(j) to question closely, to interrogate.
Stalker (2001) 93: ‘If you keep raggin’ like that, maybe not.’ She shrugged. ‘Just asked a simple question.’. | ||
Destination: Morgue! (2004) 303: Don’t rag the suicide scenario, don’t risk your pension pack. | ‘Hot-Prowl Rape-O’ in
2. to share, esp. to divide up the proceeds of a crime; thus go rags, to share out [? SE rag, to tear in pieces].
Dict. of Modern Sl. etc. (2nd edn) 198: RAG, to divide or share; ‘let’s rag it,’ or go rags, i.e., share it equally between us. | ||
Sl. Dict. |
3. with ref. to menstruation.
(a) to menstruate.
CUSS 180: Rag it Be menstruating. | et al.||
Online Sl. Dict. 🌐 rag v 1. to menstruate. (‘I’ve been ragging since Tuesday, and I feel horrible!’) 2. to stain with menses. (‘Oh, man, I ragged my pants.’). |
(b) to be irritable.
Campus Sl. Apr. 3: rag – to be irritable: Don’t talk to her, she’s ragging. |
4. (US black) to dress (fashionably).
Makes Me Wanna Holler (1995) 94: Babes flocked to guys who ragged hard. |
In compounds
(UK Und.) underworld cant.
Manchester Courier 29 June 2/3: Stop, stop [...] remember where you are; chaff and patter romany or ragflash, but no blazey. |
In phrases
1. (US) to nag, to criticize.
Campus Sl. Mar. 8: rag on – belittle, insult, tease. | ||
Way Past Cool 230: Deek was raggin on his bodyguard bout bein late for some kinda payoff clear cross town. | ||
(con. 1964–8) Cold Six Thousand 131: Carlos ragged on Guy B. Guy drank too much. Guy talked too much. Guy loved his blowhard pal Hank Hudspeth. | ||
Widespread Panic 234: ‘He’s got a group of his kids in tow, and they’re all ragging on you pretty bad’. |
2. see sense 1b above.
to abuse verbally.
Totally True Diaries of an Eighties Roller Queen 🌐 26 June Tracey is mad at me. Her mom ragged out on me over the phone. |
to threaten; thus n. rag-talk, a whining plea.
Fever Kill 63: Now he was going to rag talk. You can’t spook a guy who’s taken your gun away. | ||
What It Is 66: He went on giving the same rag-talk over the payphone in the city. | ||
Blood from Angels’ Wings 53: Do you care more about a hip-hop doggie-drop skank-weed rag-talk than about the truth?! |