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recreant - 5 dictionary results

rec⋅re⋅ant

  [rek-ree-uhnt]
Use recreant in a Sentence
–adjective
1. cowardly or craven.
2. unfaithful, disloyal, or traitorous.
–noun
3. a coward.
4. an apostate, traitor, or renegade.
Origin:
1300–50; ME < OF, adj. and n. use of prp. of recreire to yield in a contest, equiv. to re- re- + creire < L crēdere to believe

Related forms:
rec⋅re⋅ance, rec⋅re⋅an⋅cy, noun
rec⋅re⋅ant⋅ly, adverb

Synonyms:
1. dastardly, pusillanimous, base, faint-hearted, yellow. 2. faithless, untrue, apostate. 3. dastard.

Antonyms:
1. brave. 2. loyal. 3. hero.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To recreant
rec·re·ant   (rěk'rē-ənt)   
adj.  
  1. Unfaithful or disloyal to a belief, duty, or cause.
  2. Craven or cowardly.
n.  
  1. A faithless or disloyal person.
  2. A coward.

[Middle English recreaunt, defeated, from Old French recreant, present participle of recroire, to yield in a trial by combat, surrender allegiance, from Medieval Latin recrēdere, to yield, pledge : Latin re-, re- + Latin crēdere, to believe; see kerd- in Indo-European roots.]
rec're·ance, rec're·an·cy n., rec're·ant·ly adv.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Recreant

Rec"re*ant\ (-ant), a. [OF., cowardly, fr. recroire, recreire, to forsake, leave, tire, discourage, regard as conquered, LL. recredere se to declare one's self conquered in combat; hence, those are called recrediti or recreanti who are considered infamous; L. pref. re- again, back + credere to believe, to be of opinion; hence, originally, to disavow one's opinion. See Creed.]

1. Crying for mercy, as a combatant in the trial by battle; yielding; cowardly; mean-spirited; craven. "This recreant knight." --Spenser.

2. Apostate; false; unfaithful.

Who, for so many benefits received, Turned recreant to God, ingrate and false. --Milton.

Recreant

Rec"re*ant\, n. One who yields in combat, and begs for mercy; a mean-spirited, cowardly wretch. --Blackstone.

You are all recreants and dastards! --Shak.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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recreant 
c.1300 (adj.) "confessing oneself to be overcome or vanquished," from O.Fr. recreant "yielding, giving," prp. of recroire "to yield in a trial by combat, surrender allegiance," perhaps on notion of "take back one's pledge, yield one's cause," from re- "again, back" + croire "entrust, believe," from L. credere.
"Non sufficit ... nisi dicat illud verbum odiosum, quod recreantus sit." [Bracton, c.1260]
Meaning "unfaithful to duty" is from 1643. Noun sense of "one who yields in combat, coward, faint-hearted person" is first recorded c.1400.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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