as in hobo
a homeless wanderer who may beg or steal for a living
the swagman who roams through the outback is a mythic figure in Australia
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for swagman
Noun
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Consider Madewell’s roomy hobo bag in dark brown (the perfect laptop bag) or Tory Burch’s crossbody option, as essentials to wear throughout the season; then spring for a new accompaniments—like minimalist-friendly gold earrings, a sleek belt, or classic sunnies in tortoise shell.—
Kristina Rutkowski,
Vogue,
8 Oct. 2025 -
The former, in which Burnett and Hamilton did a song-and-dance routine as Dust Bowl-era hobos, marked the first of several times that the two performed together.—
Rachel Syme,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
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In the old days beggars were drawn and quartered in that square.—
George Packer,
The Atlantic,
6 Nov. 2025
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In Havana, beggars are ubiquitous.—
Jon Lee Anderson,
New Yorker,
29 Sep. 2025
Noun
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As historian Kelly Lytle Hernández writes, one thing that stood in the way of this vision was the figure of the tramp.—
JSTOR Daily,
JSTOR Daily,
21 Oct. 2025
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Help, of course, isn’t coming—not over the Indian Ocean, not in the nursing home, not on the tramps’ moonlit road.—
Helen Shaw,
New Yorker,
2 Oct. 2025
Noun
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The level of luxury she’s introduced with Barracuda is a stark contrast to the humbler quarters generally associated with backpackers and itinerant surf bums, which still make up the majority of Itacaré’s lodging options.—
David Amsden,
Travel + Leisure,
5 Nov. 2025
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And the oversized top has a split hem that falls below the bum.—
Melody Kazel,
PEOPLE,
30 Oct. 2025
Noun
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He was placed on waivers and claimed by the Cubs in August 1958, setting off a vagabond career in the big leagues.—
Jon Paul Hoornstra,
MSNBC Newsweek,
8 Sep. 2025
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Strait is a veteran of the genre known for his vagabond anthems and sweet love songs.—
Anna Kaufman,
USA Today,
13 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Indeed, a study of early 19th-century court records found that in Philadelphia, nearly half of those convicted as vagrants were African American — a figure wildly disproportionate to the city’s minority Black population.—
Equal Justice Initiative,
USA Today,
6 Nov. 2025
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Arundhati Roy identifies as a vagrant.—
Madeline Leung Coleman,
Vulture,
27 Aug. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Swagman.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/swagman. Accessed 19 Nov. 2025.
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