Plural of blackguard; dishonest or unscrupulous people who behave badly or immorally.
From 'black' + 'guard,' originating in the 16th century to describe disreputable people. The term originally referred to the lowest-ranking servants in royal households who wore black livery. Over time it came to mean any scoundrel or villain.
The word 'blackguard' reveals how prejudiced historical language was—even servants' uniforms became synonymous with villainy! This pattern of associating 'black' with negative traits shows up in hundreds of English words, reflecting biases that shaped our language centuries before modern prejudices.
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