renegade

play

noun ren·e·gade \ˈre-ni-ˌgād\

Definition of renegade

1 : a deserter from one faith, cause, or allegiance to another
2 : an individual who rejects lawful or conventional behavior

See renegade defined for English-language learners

See renegade defined for kids

Examples of renegade in a Sentence

renegades from the Republican Party
stories about pirates and renegades on the high seas

Recent Examples of renegade from the Web

In apparent protest of the award, a group of Chinese business and cultural leaders established an alternative to the Nobel, the Confucius Peace Prize, and later honored such human rights renegades as Vladimir Putin, Fidel Castro and Robert Mugabe.

— harrison smith, Alaska Dispatch News, "Liu Xiaobo, Nobel Peace Prize laureate imprisoned in China, dies at 61," 13 July 2017
His impulse, at least judging by the patterns of conservative governance in America recently, quite likely would be to call upon the governor and the Texas legislature to impose some good conservative policy on the renegade liberals from above.

— max bloom, National Review, "Let Liberal Cities Do What They Want," 13 July 2017
However, in the school’s official response to the NCAA, Ole Miss essentially absolves Freeze of any responsibility and puts all the blame on renegade boosters and rogue assistants.

— mike bianchi, OrlandoSentinel.com, "With NCAA on its tail, Ole Miss is on verge of Freezing to death," 13 July 2017
Last week, a $1.4 billion arms sale to Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a renegade province, was approved after months of delay, the same day as China's Dandong bank was sanctioned by the US for alleged ties to North Korea.

— zachary cohen, CNN, "US bombers fly over South China Sea ahead of Trump, Xi meet," 7 July 2017
The US and China have been at odds recently over a $1.4 billion arms sale to Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a renegade province, and after the US sanctioned China's Dandong bank for alleged ties to North Korea.

— eugene scott, CNN, "Obama touts Paris accord despite 'temporary absence of US leadership'," 3 July 2017
Quarterback John McGraw came off the bench and led the Renegades on two scoring drives throwing a 40-yard pass to Derek Dixon and a 20-yard pass to Willie Johnson to send the title game into overtime.

— baltimoresun.com, "Digest (June 30): Capitals sign defender Orlov to 6-year contract extension," 30 June 2017
Those last-century walls come tumbling down eventually, anyway, to reveal the sci-fi palace of horrors in which renegades like Winston meet gruesome fates.

— ben brantley, New York Times, "Review: Doubling Down on Doublespeak in ‘1984’," 22 June 2017
Many of those wounds were self-inflicted, and longtime observers said Kalanick’s departure was a long time coming given his renegade style.

— fredrick kunkle, Washington Post, "Here are some takeaways from the Uber founder’s departure," 20 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'renegade.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of renegade

Spanish renegado, from Medieval Latin renegatus, from past participle of renegare to deny, from Latin re- + negare to deny — more at negate

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1611

See Words from the same year

renegade

verb ren·e·gade

Definition of renegade

renegaded

;

renegading

intransitive verb
: to become a renegade

First Known Use of renegade

circa 1611

renegade

adjective ren·e·gade

Definition of renegade

1 : having deserted a faith, cause, or religion for a hostile one
2 : having rejected tradition : unconventional

Recent Examples of renegade from the Web

The Palace is also fictionally owned by Chuck Bass's (Ed Westwick's) family, and is where the show's renegade rich boy spends his nights.

— raisa bruner, Time, "7 Famous TV Homes You Can Actually Live In Right Now," 20 June 2017
A climate-renegade U.S. will only empower and encourage China, Europe, India, and virtually everyone else to focus on these increasingly profitable technologies and markets.

— eric roston, Bloomberg.com, "The U.S. Is The Loser as Trump Dumps the Climate Accord," 1 June 2017
Known for drug dealing and gun running, renegade motorcycle clubs have laid claim to domains throughout the Sunshine State.

— tonya alanez, Sun-Sentinel.com, "Biker gangs still cruising, committing crimes, claiming South Florida, authorities say," 26 May 2017
When John Carpenter cast him as the lead of his sci-fi dystopia Escape From New York (1981), the film’s backers considered Russell not tough enough for the role of renegade super-soldier Snake Plissken.

— david sims, The Atlantic, "Why Kurt Russell Is Still a One-of-a-Kind Movie Star," 4 May 2017
There has been backlash for the pick, which reinforces the Bengals' renegade style under owner Mike Brown.

— editors, USA TODAY, "Biggest news you missed this weekend," 30 Apr. 2017
The platinum-haired, red-lipped renegade rocker; Revlon global brand ambassador; and judge on The Voice loves her some Dylan and Brenda and sleep—definitely.

— the editors, Marie Claire, "Gwen Stefani Would Be a Makeup Artist If She Wasn't a Singer, Made Her First Dollar at a Dairy Queen," 15 Mar. 2017
A bridge over the Bosporus that was seized by renegade soldiers has been renamed for the civilians killed there.

— tim arango, New York Times, "Turkey Issues a Warrant for Fethullah Gulen, Cleric Accused in Coup AUG. 4, 2016," 7 Aug. 2016
When a home has remained in the same family for 800 years, there is bound to be a renegade ancestor or two who chooses popular style over preservation.

— kathleen hackett, ELLE Decor, "How The Interiors Of A Historic Castle In Italy Stand The Test Of Time," 18 Mar. 2015

First Known Use of renegade

1636

RENEGADE Defined for English Language Learners

renegade

play

noun

Definition of renegade for English Language Learners

: a person who leaves one group, religion, etc., and joins another that opposes it
: someone or something that causes trouble and cannot be controlled

RENEGADE Defined for Kids

renegade

play

noun ren·e·gade \ˈre-ni-ˌgād\

Definition of renegade for Students

1 : a person who deserts a faith, cause, or party
2 : a person who does not obey rules “They were renegades who thought they had permission to steal from the rich …” — Pam Muñoz Ryan, Esperanza Rising