Robin Goodfellow

9.9

A playful fairy in old stories who hides things and plays tricks on people

proper noun

Literature

: Robin Goodfellow

In Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream,' Puck is another name for Robin Goodfellow.

Examples

Many old stories describe Robin Goodfellow playing tricks on unwary travelers.
Children were warned that Robin Goodfellow might hide their shoes if they left them out at night.
Robin Goodfellow is mischievous.
Don't forget Robin Goodfellow!
In Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream,' Puck is another name for Robin Goodfellow.
Children were warned that Robin Goodfellow might hide their shoes if they left them out at night.
Many old stories describe Robin Goodfellow playing tricks on unwary travelers.

Synonyms

Puck

vsRobin Goodfellow

Literature

46 9.9

A mischievous fairy in stories who plays tricks on people

is the traditional folk name used generally rather than the literary portrayal

puckle

vsRobin Goodfellow

Archaic

1 9.9

A small mischievous spirit that plays tricks on people at night

is the modern playful folk name for a mischievous sprite

hob

vsRobin Goodfellow

Archaic

9.9

A small spirit in old stories that sometimes helps or bothers people

is mainly known for playful mischief rather than helpful tasks

Surface Forms

Robin Goodfellow main

Morphology

Robin + Goodfellow

This is a proper name for a folkloric sprite (Puck), not a compositional description; knowing 'Robin' and the elements 'good'/'fellow' does not yield 'mischievous fairy' and could even suggest a benign person. The folkloric meaning is language- and culture-specific and not predictable from the constituents, so learners who only know the parts would not infer the idiomatic sense.

Etymology

Robin Goodfellow comes from old village stories about a small, quick spirit who lived in houses. People called him Robin and Goodfellow because he could be helpful but also hide things and play tricks, so the name now means 'a mischievous sprite'.