Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Ruffian

Ruffian (ruf"yan or ruf"fi*an; 277) , noun

[French rufien, Old French ruffien, ruffian, pimp, libertine, rake; compare Pr. & Sp. rufian, Italian ruffiano; all perhaps of German or Dutch origin; compare German raufen to pluck, scuffle, fight, OD. roffen to pander. Compare Ruffle to grow turbulent.]

1.
A pimp; a pander; also, a paramour. [Obsolete]
He [her husband] is no sooner abroad than she is instantly at home, reveling with her ruffians. — Bp. Reynolds
2.
A boisterous, cruel, brutal fellow; a desperate fellow ready for murderous or cruel deeds; a cutthroat.
Wilt thou on thy deathbed play the ruffian? — Shakespeare
2.
A tough, lawless or bullying person.

Ruffian , adjective

Brutal; cruel; savagely boisterous; murderous; as, ruffian rage.

Ruffian , intransitive verb

To play the ruffian; to rage; to raise tumult. [Rare] — Shakespeare