: one who shirks duty
especially
: one who stays out of school without permission
1
: shirking responsibility
especially
: absent from school without permission
2
: being, resembling, or characteristic of a truant
truanted; truanting; truants
: to idle away time especially while playing truant
… three truanting school kids …—
Marlowe Fawcett
Marlowe FawcettExamples of truant in a Sentence
Noun
an increasing number of truants
Recent Examples on the Web
Jessi Jezewska Stevens, The Dial, 2 Dec. 2025
The charismatic truant has since become an archetype of 1980s cool.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 6 June 2025
Jon England, Mercury News, 2 Dec. 2025
In Chicago, nearly half of students were considered chronically truant, according to state data.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 4 Sep. 2025
Lauren Lantry, ABC News, 16 Nov. 2023
See All Example Sentences for truant
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Noun
One is reminded of Victor Frankenstein who, having chased his truant monster deep into the Arctic, dies overwhelmed by exhaustion and regret.
—Jessi Jezewska Stevens, The Dial, 2 Dec. 2025
The charismatic truant has since become an archetype of 1980s cool.
—Rachel Cormack, Robb Report, 6 June 2025
Adjective
In Kentucky, a 2024 law requiring court referrals for truant students led to a surge of families pulling their children out of public schools to homeschool, rather than face legal consequences.
—Jon England, Mercury News, 2 Dec. 2025
In Chicago, nearly half of students were considered chronically truant, according to state data.
—The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 4 Sep. 2025
Verb
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
See All Example Sentences for truant
Cite this Entry
“Truant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/truant. Accessed 20 Dec. 2025.
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