recreant

1 of 2

adjective

rec·​re·​ant ˈre-krē-ənt How to pronounce recreant (audio)
Synonyms of recreantnext
1
: crying for mercy : cowardly
2
: unfaithful to duty or allegiance

recreant

2 of 2

noun

1
: coward
2
: apostate, deserter

Synonyms

Adjective

Noun

See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus 

Examples of recreant in a Sentence

Adjective the victors had only contempt for the recreant enemy soldiers who surrendered without firing a shot recreant campaign workers who walked out as soon as their candidate began dropping in the polls Noun traditionally armies have dealt harshly with recreants, with execution being a common punishment for desertion during wartime the historian reserved his greatest contempt for those recreants who opposed the witch hunt but lacked the courage to speak out against it

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Anglo-French, from present participle of (se) recreire to give up, yield, from Medieval Latin (se) recredere to resign oneself (to a judgment), from Latin re- + credere to believe — more at creed

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of recreant was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near recreant

recreancy

recreant

re-create

See More Nearby Entries 

Cite this Entry

“Recreant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/recreant. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.

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Kids Definition

recreant

1 of 2 adjective
rec·​re·​ant ˈrek-rē-ənt How to pronounce recreant (audio)
1
: crying for mercy : cowardly
2
: unfaithful to duty or allegiance

recreant

2 of 2 noun
1
: coward
2
: one that is unfaithful : betrayer, deserter
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