vagabond

1 of 3

noun

vag·​a·​bond ˈva-gə-ˌbänd 

: a person who wanders from place to place without a fixed home : one leading a vagabond life

especially : vagrant, tramp

vagabondage

ˈva-gə-ˌbän-dij 

noun

vagabondism

ˈva-gə-ˌbän-ˌdi-zəm 

noun

vagabond

2 of 3

adjective

1

: moving from place to place without a fixed home : wandering

2

a

: of, relating to, or characteristic of a wanderer

b

: leading an unsettled, irresponsible, or disreputable life

vagabondish

ˈva-gə-ˌbän-dish 

adjective

vagabond

3 of 3

verb

vagabonded; vagabonding; vagabonds

intransitive verb

: to wander in the manner of a vagabond : roam about

Synonyms of vagabond

Noun

• hobo
• beggar
• tramp
• bum
• vagrant
• transient

Adjective

• nomadic
• nomad

Examples of vagabond in a Sentence

Noun

be wary of the vagabonds in that corner of the city

after they retired, the couple bought an RV and became footloose vagabonds

Adjective

a vagabond group of entertainers that performed in rough-and-tumble mining towns

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

There are no talking-head interviews putting addiction into a moral context, nor are there romanticized vagabonds. — Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Dec. 2025

Astronomers reckon there could be a whole bunch of these vagabond rogue planets out there, maybe as many as 21 for every star in our Milky Way galaxy. — Paul Sutter, Space.com, 21 Mar. 2026

Adjective

The coaches are no different—and have been vagabond for longer. — Max Olson, The Athletic, 12 July 2024

Injuries help to explain the vagabond nature of Burdi's career. — Jon Paul Hoornstra, MSNBC Newsweek, 25 Nov. 2025

Verb

Providing different perspectives are a vagabonding Swedish artist and his British wife as well as an Aboriginal wrangler called Billy, whose skill as a cricket batsman has blighted his connection to his family traditions. — Alida Becker, New York Times, 5 May 2023

In 1978, Wenner sold the magazine to Larry Burke, a young man from Chicago who had spent a chunk of his twenties vagabonding around Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. — Rachel Monroe, New Yorker, 18 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English vacabounde, vagabounde, borrowed from Anglo-French & Late Latin; Anglo-French vacabunde, borrowed from Late Latin vagābundus, from Latin vagārī "to wander, roam" (verbal derivative of vagus "moving freely, wandering") + -bundus, deverbal adjective suffix (akin to Latin fuī "I was," Old English bēon "to be") — more at vague, be

First Known Use

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

circa 1586, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

vagabond

1 of 2 adjective

vag·​a·​bond ˈvag-ə-ˌbänd 

: moving from place to place without a fixed home

vagabond

2 of 2 noun

: a person who leads a vagabond life

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English vagabond "moving about with no fixed home," from early French vacabund (same meaning), from Latin vagabundus (same meaning), from vagari "to wander about" — related to extravagant