renegade

[ ren-i-geyd ]

noun

1. a person who deserts a party or cause for another.

   Synonyms: betrayer, deserter, dissenter, traitor

2. an apostate from a religious faith.

adjective

1. of or like a renegade; traitorous.

renegade

/ ˈrɛnɪˌɡeɪd /

noun

1. 1. a person who deserts his or her cause or faith for another; apostate; traitor
   2. ( as modifier )

      a renegade priest

2. any outlaw or rebel

Word History and Origins

Origin of renegade¹

First recorded in 1575–85; from Spanish renegado, from Medieval Latin renegātus, noun use of past participle of renegāre “to desert”; renege

Word History and Origins

Origin of renegade¹

C16: from Spanish renegado , from Medieval Latin renegāre to renounce, from Latin re- + negāre to deny

Example Sentences

Greg is taking a big risk here, siding with the renegade as opposed to the company line, and he will probably try to use his leverage to cut a deal to avoid any sort of consequences for his role in the cover up.

From Time

Online video sharing—and we're talking the renegade kind, uploaded by fans and shared freely—greatly contributed to The Daily Show's massive cultural footprint before Stewart left that show behind in 2015.

From Ars Technica

When the solo anti-censorship renegade came to school — literally prevented of her own volition from talking — in spirit, she was joining demonstrations against the bills happening online and in-person.

From Digiday

GameStop shocked the world with its sudden stock price surge earlier this year, buoyed by a band of renegade Redditors turned amateur day traders.

From Ozy

Fletcher is part of “group of renegades,” he says, who are on a mission to plug literature back into the electric heart of contemporary life and culture.

From Nautilus

What does that promising growth mean for the renegade brewers at Casa Bruja?

From The Daily Beast

To paraphrase the renegade philosopher Hannibal, I love it when science comes together.

From The Daily Beast

One of the strongest of the anti-Islamists is a renegade general, Khalifa Haftar, who is fighting in the east.

From The Daily Beast

But its title is a misnomer: The far-from-renegade Gay is a very good feminist.

From The Daily Beast

Earlier this year, Miller responded to calls to stand with Cliven Bundy and declared common cause with the renegade rancher.

From The Daily Beast

Already the patch of brush in which lay the renegade Policemen was hidden in the smudge, shut away from our sight.

From Project Gutenberg

Cousin would have tried a shot at the renegade if not for fear of instant reprisal on the girl.

From Project Gutenberg

His former friends treated him as a renegade, and the whig newspapers showered abuse upon him.

From Project Gutenberg

The renegade Yankee, and not the native planter, is made to bear the heaviest blow.

From Project Gutenberg

It was dangerous in the extreme, it might mean death, but it was death if he stayed in the clutches of the renegade half-breed.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• reactionary