Bullyrag
/ˈbʊliˌræɡ/noun
To bully, browbeat, or scold someone harshly.
Did you know?Bullyrag appears in 18th-century English slang as a forceful, rough-speaking word, likely built from the older sense of bully meaning a swaggering ruffian, with rag used in the sense of harass or scold.
Etymological Timeline
18th Century
English
bully-rag
“To bully, scold, or harass in a rough, noisy way.”
16th Century
English
bully
“A swaggering fellow, a ruffian, or a hired protector.”
Middle English
Middle English
raggen
“To scold or berate; to harass with rough speech.”
Old Norse
ON
rǫggva
“To roughen or make shaggy; associated with roughness and disorder.”
Proto-Germanic
PGmc
*rugjōną
“To make rough or shaggy.”