Gay's Beggar's Opera'

Preserved but no longer current.

Meaning · English

Robin of Bagshot, one of Macheath's gang, was alias Gordon, alias Bluff Bob, alias Carbuncle, alias Bob Booty.

Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)

Sources & notes

Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.

Common questions

What does “Gay's Beggar's Opera'” mean?

Robin of Bagshot, one of Macheath's gang, was alias Gordon, alias Bluff Bob, alias Carbuncle, alias Bob Booty.

Is “Gay's Beggar's Opera'” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.