scampsman

English

Etymology

From scamp +‎ -s- +‎ man.

Noun

scampsman (plural scampsmen)

1. (dated, slang) highwayman
   • 1834, William Harrison Ainsworth, Rookwood, The Game of High Toby:

     Now Oliver puts his blank nightcap on,¶ And every star its glim is hiding,¶ And forth to the heath is the scampsman gone,¶ His matchless cherry-black prancer riding;

   • 1846, James Henry, ed. Dixon, “The Trotting Horse”, in Scottish Traditional Versions of Ancient Ballads, page 244:

     Up comes some saucy kiddy, a scampsman on the hot, / But ere he pulls the trigger I am off just like a shot.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:highwayman