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vagabond

 - 4 dictionary results

vag⋅a⋅bond

[vag-uh-bond]
–adjective
1. wandering from place to place without any settled home; nomadic: a vagabond tribe.
2. leading an unsettled or carefree life.
3. disreputable; worthless; shiftless.
4. of, pertaining to, or characteristic of a vagabond: vagabond habits.
5. having an uncertain or irregular course or direction: a vagabond voyage.
–noun
6. a person, usually without a permanent home, who wanders from place to place; nomad.
7. an idle wanderer without a permanent home or visible means of support; tramp; vagrant.
8. a carefree, worthless, or irresponsible person; rogue.

Origin:
1400–50; late ME vagabound (< OF vagabond) < LL vagābundus wandering, vagrant, equiv. to L vagā() to wander + -bundus adj. suffix


vag⋅a⋅bond⋅ish, adjective


7. hobo, loafer. See vagrant. 8. knave, idler.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To vagabond
vag·a·bond   (vāg'ə-bŏnd')   
n.  
  1. A person without a permanent home who moves from place to place.

  2. A vagrant; a tramp.

  3. A wanderer; a rover.

adj.  
  1. Of, relating to, or characteristic of a wanderer; nomadic.

  2. Aimless; drifting.

  3. Irregular in course or behavior; unpredictable.

intr.v.   vag·a·bond·ed, vag·a·bond·ing, vag·a·bonds
To lead the life of a vagabond; roam about.

[Middle English vagabonde, from Old French vagabond, from Late Latin vagābundus, wandering, from Latin vagārī, to wander, from vagus, wandering.]
vag'a·bond'age n., vag'a·bond'ism n.
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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Word Origin & History

vagabond  (adj.)
1426 (earlier vacabond, 1404), from M.Fr. vagabonde, from L.L. vagabundus "wandering, strolling about," from L. vagari "wander" (from vagus "wandering, undecided;" see vague) + gerundive suffix -bundus. The noun is first recorded c.1485.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Bible Dictionary

Vagabond

from Lat. vagabundus, "a wanderer," "a fugitive;" not used opprobriously (Gen. 4:12, R.V., "wanderer;" Ps. 109:10; Acts 19:13, R.V., "strolling").

Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary
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