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arrant - 4 dictionary results

ar⋅rant

[ar-uhnt]
–adjective
1. downright; thorough; unmitigated; notorious: an arrant fool.
2. wandering; errant.

Origin:
1350–1400; ME, var. of errant


ar⋅rant⋅ly, adverb


1. thoroughgoing, utter, confirmed, flagrant.
ar·rant   (ār'ənt)   
adj.  Completely such; thoroughgoing: an arrant fool; the arrant luxury of the ocean liner.

[Variant of errant.]
ar'rant·ly adv.

Arrant

Ar"rant\, a. [OE. erraunt, errant, errand, equiv. to E. errant wandering, which was first applied to vagabonds, as an errant rogue, an errant thief, and hence passed gradually into its present and worse sense. See Errant.] Notoriously or pre["e]minently bad; thorough or downright, in a bad sense; shameless; unmitigated; as, an arrant rogue or coward.

I discover an arrant laziness in my soul. --Fuller.

2. Thorough or downright, in a good sense. [Obs.]

An arrant honest woman. --Burton.

arrant 
c.1386, variant of errant (q.v.), at first merely derogatory, then (1550) acquiring a meaning "thoroughgoing, downright."
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