truant

1 of 3

noun

tru·​ant ˈtrü-ənt How to pronounce truant (audio)
: one who shirks duty
especially : one who stays out of school without permission

truant

2 of 3

adjective

1
: shirking responsibility
2
: being, resembling, or characteristic of a truant

truant

3 of 3

verb

truanted; truanting; truants

intransitive verb

: to idle away time especially while playing truant

Examples of truant in a Sentence

Noun an increasing number of truants
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
The two actors headlined the 1986 John Hughes classic, with Broderick playing the titular truant and Ruck playing his neurotic best friend, Cameron Frye. Devan Coggan, EW.com, 21 Mar. 2023 Others are battling substance abuse or pornography/promiscuity addictions, are frequent truants, or need help dealing with low self-esteem or social rejection. Judith Segaloff, Sun Sentinel, 23 Feb. 2023 The iconic '80s movie starred Matthew Broderick as the titular truant who skipped school alongside pals Cameron (Alan Ruck) and Sloane (Mia Sara), resulting in all kinds of comedic shenanigans, and now a new film will focus on two minor characters and their own misadventures. Philip Ellis, Men's Health, 20 Aug. 2022 And under California law, the letter reads, that means his son is considered a truant. Harmeet Kaur, CNN, 22 Oct. 2020 The film follows Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), a 12-year-old truant causing trouble on the streets of Paris. Gabe Cohn, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2020 In the House of Representatives, East Bay Rep. Eric Swalwell was the top truant of the presidential contenders, missing 39.7 percent of votes this year. Casey Tolan, The Mercury News, 18 Aug. 2019 Ten were booked as runaways five as truants and one turned out to be an AWOL Marine from Camp Pendleton. Johnny Miller — Jack Viets, San Francisco Chronicle, 9 May 2018 In Park Hill School District about 150 students who observed the walkout were marked truant. Mará Rose Williams, kansascity, 20 Mar. 2018
Adjective
Thirty-seven percent of children were deemed chronically truant after racking up 10 unexcused absences. Lauren Lumpkin, Washington Post, 20 Dec. 2023 Across charter schools, 726 truant teens were referred to court. Lauren Lumpkin, Washington Post, 20 Dec. 2023 The city’s most vulnerable students — including children who are economically disadvantaged, living in foster care or experiencing homelessness — were most likely to be chronically absent or truant. Lauren Lumpkin, Washington Post, 30 Nov. 2023 Superintendent Jesse Brandt of Hall High School District 502, a one-school district of about 400 students in rural Bureau County, said school employees will no longer refer truant students to police. Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 13 May 2022 For the 2021-2022 school year, there were 14.7 million students truant in US. Lauren Lantry, ABC News, 16 Nov. 2023 Under a law that went into effect in 2019, the Illinois legislature banned schools from referring truant students to police so that they could be ticketed. Jennifer Smith Richards, ProPublica, 26 May 2022 Otherwise, he will be considered truant. Lois K. Solomon, sun-sentinel.com, 4 Aug. 2020 The laws include greater punishments for crimes committed in ghettos, and the potential to halt social support for various infractions such as having children who are truant or don’t attend external child care for a certain number of hours in a week. Lenora Chu, The Christian Science Monitor, 2 June 2021
Verb
The program helps truant students get back on track. Byron Pitts, ABC News, 16 Nov. 2023 In Los Angeles, school superintendent Alberto Carvalho has gone door to door; in Alabama, signs stressing the importance of attendance are displayed on front lawns; in Philadelphia, local programs have been established that send out text messages to potentially truant youths' parents. Lauren Lantry, ABC News, 16 Nov. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'truant.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun

Middle English, vagabond, idler, from Anglo-French, of Celtic origin; akin to Old Irish trógán wretch, trúag wretched

First Known Use

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1561, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1580, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of truant was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near truant

Cite this Entry

“Truant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/truant. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

truant

noun
tru·​ant
ˈtrü-ənt
1
: a person who neglects duty
2
: a student who stays out of school without permission
truant adjective
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