miscreant definition |Dictionary.com

miscreant

10 dictionary results for: miscreant

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English - Cite This Source - Share This

Main Entry:	miscreant¹
Part of Speech:	adj
Definition:	disbelieving; heretical
Etymology:	Middle French mes- 'mis-' + croire 'to believe'

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English, Preview Edition (v 0.9.7)
Copyright © 2007 Lexico Publishing Group, LLC

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English - Cite This Source - Share This

Main Entry:	miscreant¹
Part of Speech:	n
Definition:	a disbeliever; heretic
Etymology:	Middle French mes- 'mis-' + croire 'to believe'

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English, Preview Edition (v 0.9.7)
Copyright © 2007 Lexico Publishing Group, LLC

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English - Cite This Source - Share This

Main Entry:	miscreant²
Part of Speech:	adj
Definition:	depraved; behaving badly
Etymology:	Middle French mes- 'mis-' + croire 'to believe'

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English, Preview Edition (v 0.9.7)
Copyright © 2007 Lexico Publishing Group, LLC

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English - Cite This Source - Share This

Main Entry:	miscreant²
Part of Speech:	n
Definition:	a scoundrel; reprobate
Etymology:	Middle French mes- 'mis-' + croire 'to believe'

Webster's New Millennium™ Dictionary of English, Preview Edition (v 0.9.7)
Copyright © 2007 Lexico Publishing Group, LLC

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

mis·cre·ant

[mis-kree-uh

nt] Pronunciation Key

–adjective

1.	depraved, villainous, or base.

2.	Archaic. holding a false or unorthodox religious belief; heretical.

–noun

3.	a vicious or depraved person; villain.

4.	Archaic. a heretic or infidel.

[Origin: 1350–1400; ME < MF mescreant unbelieving, equiv. to mes- mis-¹ + creant ≪ L crédent- credent

]

Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

mis·cre·ant (mĭs'krē-ənt) Pronunciation Key
n.

An evildoer; a villain.
An infidel; a heretic.

[Middle English miscreaunt, heretic, from Old French mescreant, present participle of mescroire, to disbelieve : mes-, wrongly, not; see mis-¹ + croire, to believe (from Latin crēdere; see kerd- in Indo-European roots).]

mis'cre·ant adj.

(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
miscreant (adj.)

c.1330, "heretical, unbelieving, infidel," from O.Fr. mescreant, from mes- "wrongly" (see mis- (2)) + creant, prp. of creire "believe," from L. credere. The noun is attested from c.1380; originally "heathen, Saracen;" sense of "villain" first recorded 1590 in Spenser.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This

miscreant
noun
a person without moral scruples [syn: reprobate]

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Miscreant

Mis"cre*ant\, n. [OF. mescreant, F. m['e]cr['e]ant; pref. mes- (L. minus less) + p. pr. fr. L. credere to believe. See Creed.]

1. One who holds a false religious faith; a misbeliever. [Obs.] --Spenser. De Quincey.

Thou oughtest not to be slothful to the destruction of the miscreants, but to constrain them to obey our Lord God. --Rivers.

2. One not restrained by Christian principles; an unscrupulous villain; a while wretch. --Addison.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This

Miscreant

Mis"cre*ant\, a. 1. Holding a false religious faith.

2. Destitute of conscience; unscrupulous. --Pope.

CITE THIS SOURCE|PRINT

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Use · Link to Us · Report Ad · Contact Us