Ralph Roister Doister
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
The title of the earliest English comedy; so called from the chief character. Written by Nicholas Udall about 1533 for performance by the boys at Eton, where he was then headmaster.
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 “Ralph Roister Doister” mean?
The title of the earliest English comedy; so called from the chief character. Written by Nicholas Udall about 1533 for performance by the boys at Eton, where he was then headmaster.
Is “Ralph Roister Doister” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.