vagabond

noun

vag·a·bond | \ ˈva-gə-ˌbänd

Definition of vagabond

(Entry 1 of 3)

: a person who wanders from place to place without a fixed home : one leading a vagabond life especially : vagrant, tramp

vagabond

adjective

Definition of vagabond (Entry 2 of 3)

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

2a : of, relating to, or characteristic of a wanderer

b : leading an unsettled, irresponsible, or disreputable life

vagabond

verb

vagabonded; vagabonding; vagabonds

Definition of vagabond (Entry 3 of 3)

intransitive verb

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

Other Words from vagabond Synonyms Example Sentences Learn More About vagabond

Other Words from vagabond

Noun

vagabondage \ ˈva-gə-ˌbän-dij

\ noun

vagabondism \ ˈva-gə-ˌbän-ˌdi-zəm

\ noun

Adjective

vagabondish \ ˈva-gə-ˌbän-dish

\ adjective

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 Few, however, remain today, as so many in period succumbed to rust or maltreatment, being passed from one vagabond owner to the next, each toking his or her way from campground to campground. — Robert Ross, Robb Report, 13 June 2022 Since season 1, fans have been wondering what the deal is with the mysterious, seemingly all-knowing vagabond Horse (Brendan Sexton III). — Lauren Huff, EW.com, 22 Apr. 2022 If ever there was a good time be a vagabond, this stretch of the Lakers’ schedule might be as good as any. — Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2022 Our surrogate, Kay, is a young woman who ran away from her southern Louisiana home to live as a vagabond. — Todd Martensgame Critic, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2022 Alexia is a vagabond, moving from place to place—Siberia, Alaska—apparently in search of her mother, who has somehow been lost to her. — Ruth Franklin, The New Yorker, 14 Mar. 2022 All-Pro and three-time Pro Bowl selection during his time with the Pittsburgh Steelers (2013-17), has had a vagabond existence since sitting out the 2018 season while in a contract dispute with the Steelers. — Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, 21 Dec. 2021 The fair has become a vagabond in recent years, hopscotching from Hallandale Beach to Pembroke Pines and back. — Phillip Valys, sun-sentinel.com, 16 Nov. 2021 That guiso rojo was a cornerstone for the Generala Plate ($12), a fortifying combo that also included costilla, refried beans, chopped nopales and fresh corn tortillas for scooping like a trainyard vagabond (or just a hungry dad at a picnic). — Mike Sutter, San Antonio Express-News, 8 Oct. 2021 Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective There are records of albatrosses spending decades living as vagabond singletons in the wrong hemisphere, Lees said. — Arkansas Online, 7 Nov. 2021 By modern standards, Wray's story feels like rock and roll lore that edges on pulp: As a child, he was raised in poverty in Dunn, North Carolina, and learned to play guitar from a vagabond bluesman named Hambone. — Colin Stutz, Billboard, 10 Oct. 2017 Hill’s book teems with sloppy and obvious devices (to the point of cliche), including a vagabond narrator (Steve Pacek) preempting for us the obvious songs that require no explanation. — Jim Rutter, Philly.com, 24 Sep. 2017 The vagabond fair has set up in a half-dozen different locations over the past 41 years, but it was forced to cancel its plans in recent years because of the problems securing city permits. — Larry Barszewski, Sun-Sentinel.com, 22 Sep. 2017 Spoiler alert: The Glass Castle, in theaters now and based on journalist Jeannette Walls’ 2005 best-selling memoir about her vagabond childhood, boasts one of the most unexpected, triumphant, hide-under-your-couch scenes in recent film history. — Justine Harman, Glamour, 16 Aug. 2017 See More

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

History and Etymology for vagabond

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