Question of the Day #531

"Duluth is perched mid-continent at the western tip of Lake Superior, and many residents are stoically proud of the harsh winters that define the place. 'It keeps the riff-raff out, they assured each other."

From the 4th paragraph of this article at GreenBiz.

上記の文で、riff-raffの意味は？
In the sentence above, what does "riff-raff" mean?

答えは、コメントに書いてください。
Write your answer in the Comments.

明日、ここに答えを書きます。
I will add the answer and other remarks here tomorrow.

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解答

意味：
英辞郎によると、

1. 〔侮蔑的〕人間のくず、下層階級の人
2. 〈話〉くず、がらくた

Answer

According to Cambridge Dictionary:

people with a bad reputation or of a low social class

Examples

• She says that charging high prices will keep the riff-raff out.
• Stiff admission fees kept the riff-raff off the piers in those early days. Times, Sunday Times (2008)
• ‘I saw the sort of riff-raff that had been invited’
• But then, the riff-raff were very definitely excluded from this gathering of high rollers. Times, Sunday Times (2008)
• They were a mixture of the keen, the desperate and riff-raff. Times, Sunday Times (2009)

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