Spalpeen

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A mischievous or troublesome young person, often referred to as a rascal ; a term used to describe an impudent or cheeky fellow ; sometimes used playfully to refer to an urchin or scamp
2. A label for a rogue or knavish child ; a nickname given to an impish or disobedient youth ; a lighthearted term for a streetwise or resourceful youngster
3. Used to identify someone, usually a boy, who is impudent or cheeky ; an endearing name for a mischievous brat ; characterized as a petty troublemaker or playful scoundrel

Etymology: The word arrived in English in the late 18th century from Irish "spailpín", and its original sense was far from mischief. An "spailpín" was a migrant labourer who walked the Irish countryside seeking temporary work, often on farms or in harvests, with little security and few possessions. Because such workers were poor, transient outsiders, the name carried a sense of being unsettled and unreliable, and that connotation gradually shifted toward the image of a wandering rogue. Over time the term drifted from describing a hired worker to describing a cheeky, roguish fellow, and in English use it settled into affectionate teasing. Today it is most often heard in Hiberno-English and in writing that imitates Irish speech, where a "spalpeen" is a scamp or a little rascal rather than a labourer.

Synonyms: rascal, scoundrel, rogue, scamp, knave

Antonyms: gentleman, hero, saint, nobleman, patriot