Ratboy

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proper noun

The fictional character Alex Krycek from The X-Files.

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Meanings

proper noun
  1. The X-Files fandom slangThe fictional character Alex Krycek from The X-Files.

    Do you know who Ratboy is?

    1996, Susan J. Clerc, “DDEB, GATB, MPPB, and Ratboy”, in David Lavery, Angela Hague, Marla Cartwright, editors, Deny All knowledge: Reading the X-files, page 37
    2 more examples

    But this Krycek—self-consciously multivoiced, focalizing as a fan reader through his obsession with Mulder, Ratboy yet sympathetically damaged—is carefully constructed as a recognizable source character interpreted in a new light.

    2014, Deborah Kaplan, “Construction of Fan Fiction Character Through Narrative”, in Karen Hellekson, Kristina Busse, editors, Fan Fiction and Fan Communities in the Age of the Internet, page 143

    Given his credentials, Ratboy seems like the perfect candidate for the job.

    2016, Natalie Clubb, The X-Files: The Official Collection - The Agents, The Bureau, and The Syndicate, page 144

Origin

From rat + boy. Coined by fans as a humorous reference to the character's amoral and duplicitous nature. Popularized on alt.tv.x-files, the main Usenet newsgroup for the show, where it is first attested in 1994.

Full word history & related roots →

Rhymes & wordplay

Anagrams

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Cite this entry
APA

Ratboy. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ratboy

MLA

“Ratboy.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ratboy. Accessed November 2, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Ratboy,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Ratboy.

Source: Ratboy on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.