Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definition: Truant |
TruantAdjective1. Absent without permission; "truant schoolboys"; "the soldier was AWOL for almost a week". Noun1. One who is absent from school without permission. 2. Someone who shirks duty. Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "truant" was first used: sometime around 1300. (references) |
Synonyms: TruantSynonyms: awol (adj), hooky player (n), nonattender (n), no-show (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Absence | Verb: be absent; Adjective: keep away, keep out of the way; play truant, absent oneself, stay away; keep aloof, hold aloof. |
Avoidance | Shirker; Verb: truant; fugitive, refugee; runaway, runagate; maroon. |
Beat a retreat; turn tail, turn one's back; take to one's heels; runaway, run for one's life; cut and run; be off like a shot; fly, flee; fly away, flee away, run away from; take flight, take to flight; desert, elope; make off, scamper off, sneak off, shuffle off, sheer off; break away, tear oneself away, slip away, slink away, steel away, make away from, scamper away from, sneak away from, shuffle away from, sheer away from; slip cable, part company, turn one's heel; sneak out of, play truant, give one the go by, give leg bail, take French leave, slope, decamp, flit, bolt, abscond, levant, skedaddle, absquatulate, cut one's stick, walk one's chalks, show a light pair of heels, make oneself scarce; escape; go away; (depart); abandon; reject. | |
Inactivity | Idler, drone, droil, dawdle, mopus; do-little faineant, dummy, sleeping partner; afternoon farmer; truant; (runaway) : bummer, loafer, goldbrick, goldbicker, lounger, lazzarone; lubber, lubbard; slow coach; (slow.); opium eater, lotus eater; slug; lag, sluggard, slugabed; slumberer, dormouse, marmot; waiter on Providence, fruges consumere natus. |
Knave | Traitor, betrayer, archtraitor, conspirator, Judas, Catiline; reptile, serpent, snake in the grass, wolf in sheep's clothing, sneak, Jerry Sneak, squealer, tell-tale, mischief-maker; trimmer, fence-sitter, renegade; (tergiversation); truant, recreant; sycophant; (servility). |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
Crosswords: Truant |
| English words defined with "truant": Micher ♦ Trivant, Truand, Truantly, Truantship. (references) |
| Etymologies containing "truant": Trivant. (references) |
| Domain | Usage | |
Movie/TV Titles | Truant Student (1959) The Screwy Truant (1945) Truant Officer Donald (1941) The Truant Soul (1916) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title |
Books | |
Theater & Movies | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit |  | Truant officer. Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits. | |||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | There, they play truant continually. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Children | Jordan | Education is compulsory until the age of 16; however, no legislation exists to enforce the law or punish guardians for violating it, and children who do not attend school or attend infrequently are not considered truant. (references) |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| "Truant" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 56.25% of the time. "Truant" is used about 16 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 56.25% | 9 | 117,287 |
| Adjective (general or positive) | 37.5% | 6 | 143,867 |
| Noun (proper) | 6.25% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 16 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "truant": be truant ♦ play truant ♦ To play truant. Additional references. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Expression | Frequency per Day |
truant | 18 |
alien ant farm truant | 6 |
officer truant | 3 |
johnny truant | 2 |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Language | Translations for "truant"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | përtac (dangler, dawdler, do nothing, do-naught, faineant, good for nothing, idle, Idler, indolent, lazy, moocher, ne'er do well, otiose, poke, slacker, slothful, sluggard, snail, sundowner, swabber, twiddler), nxënës që lë mësim, njeri i çrregullt. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | كسلان (drone, inactive, indolent, lie-abed), متغيب عن المدرسة, متخلف (absent, ataxy, backward, behind one's back, falling behind, lagging, sloven, underdeveloped), غائب (absent, away, wanting), تلميذ متهرب من المدرسة, تلميذ غائب من المدرسة, المتهرب من واجب, المتغيب عن المدرسة, المتشرد (canter, hobo, rogue, straggler, tramp, vagabond, vagrant, wanderer, wastrel). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | кръшкач (quitter, shirk, shirker, skulk, slacker, soldier, wag), не на мястото си, избягал (fugitive, runaway). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 課 (be truant from school; cut classes). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | ulejvák (dodger, shirk, skiver, slacker), líný (faineant, idle, indolent, lazy, remiss). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Farsi | مکتب گریز, طفره رو (Dodger, Goldbrick, Procrastinator, Shirk), ازاموزشگاه گریززدن , شاگردیاادم طفره رو. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Finnish | pinnata (cut, play truant, shirk), olla poissa koulusta (play truant, stay away from school), lintsata (cut, play truant). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | vagabond (tramp), paresseux (trifling), absent sans autorisation, absent, élève absentéiste. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | Schulschwänzer (truants), Bummler (dawdler, drifter, drifters, Idler, johnny, laggards, loafer, loafers, stroller). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | κοπανατζήσ, σκασιάρχησ, φυγόσχολοσ, φυγόπονοσ (idle, shirker). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | משתמט (dodger, malingerer, shirker, slacker). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | munkakerülõ (lazy-bones, quitter, shirker, work-shy), iskolakerülõ. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indonesian | pembolos (deserter), pemangkir, mangkir (absent), bolos (not present, penetrated, play-truant). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | pigro (idle, Idler, lazy, rottenly, slack, slothful, sluggard, sluggish), che marina la scuola. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Kanji | 狡ける (to be idle, to play truant, to shirk one's duties), サフラン" (knapsack), minor characters, sabot, sabotage, Sabrina pants, sand, sub, sub notebook, sub promenade, sub reader, sub sack, subbank, subculture, subdomain, sub-goal, sub-graph, subhead, subject, subleader, sublet, subliminal ad, submanager, submarine, submarine pitcher, sub-menu, subnet, subnetting, sub-network, sub-pattern, sub-process, subroutine, sub-set, substance, substitute, sub-system, subteen, subtitle, subtrack, subway, supplement, supplier, supply, to be idle, to be truant, to sabotage by slowness, zephyr lily). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Katakana | ずるける (to be idle, to play truant, to shirk one's duties), サボる (to be idle, to be truant, to sabotage by slowness). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | trugganeyr, trugganagh, truggan, shaghrynagh (abberant, absent, bewildering, devious, disjointed, drifter, errant, misleading, stray, strayer, wandering), shaghraneagh (muzzy, vagabond, vagrant). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | uanttray aluno que mata aula. (various references) trândav (easeful, idle, inactive, lazy, sluggard, sluggish, vacant), leneş (bum, dull, easeful, easy going, idle, Idler, idly, lazily, lazy, lazybones, loafer, loiterer, otiose, shiftless, slothful, sluggard, sluggish, torpid, vacant), indolent (careless, easy going, idle, indolent, lazy, nonchalant, remiss, slack, sleepy, slothful, supine, unheeding), haimana (gutter-snipe, larrikin, loafer, ragamuffin, Ranger, renegade, scapegrace, street arab, tramp, vagabond), derbedeu (reprobate, rogue, scapegrace, scoundrel, tramp, urchin, vagabond), chiulangiu (slacker). (various references) прогульщик (hooky, quitter, shirker, slacker, wag). (various references) zabušant (malingerer, passenger, quitter, shirker, slacker), učenik koji izostaje iz škole. (various references) vago (bone-idle, erratic, faint, idle, Idler, lazybones, loiterer, loose, nameless, shadowy, sketchy, slacker, slouch, sloven, tramp, twilight, vacant, vague), rácano (lead, slacker), novillero, haragán (drone, Idler, loafer, lounger, slob, sluggard), hacer novillos, gandul (dodger, idle, Idler, lazy, loiterer, shirker, slacker, slob, spiv), desparecido, ausente (absent, absented, absentee, missing, no show, out), ausentarse (absent, absent oneself, break, cut, leak, stay away, stop away). (various references) skolkare (shirker). (various references) okul kaçağı (hookey, hooky), kaytarıcı (dodger, shirker), dersi asan kimse. (various references) нехтувати обов'язками, ледащо (dawdle, dawdler, fribble, gadabout, layabout, lazybones, ne'er do well, scalawag, scallawag, scallywag, slacker, slob), прогулювати заняття, прогульник (absentee, hookey, wag). (various references) hay trốn việc; lêu lổng; lười biếng, hay trốn học. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Old French | 900-1400 | truant. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "truant": truanted, truanting, truantries, truantry, truants. (additional references) | |
| |
"Truant" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: thrant, Tradanet, traint, Tranto, traust, Travanti, trawan, triant, Triento, Troarn, trouvant, truan, Truande, Truath, trubant, truent, truin, truit, trunt, Trurnit, tryant, Tsuang, turan, turnt, tyraunt. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "truant" (pronounced truw"unt) |
| 4 | -uw" u n t | confluent, fluent, pursuant. |
| 3 | -u n t | abandonment, abatement, aberrant, abhorrent, abortifacient, absent, absorbent, abstinent, abundant, accelerant, accident, accompaniment, accomplishment, accountant, accouterment, achievement, acknowledgement, acknowledgment, adamant, adherent, adjacent, adjournment, adjustment, adjutant, adolescent, adornment, advancement, advertisement, advisement, afferent, affiant, affluent, agent, aggrandizement, agreement, ailment, alignment, allotment, amazement, ambient, ambivalent, amendment, amusement, ancient, announcement, annulment, antecedent, antidepressant, antigovernment, antioxidant, apartment, apparent, appeasement, applicant, appointment, apportionment, ardent, argent, argument, armament, arraignment, arrangement, arrant, arrogant, ascendant, aspirant, assailant, assessment, assignment, assistant, assortment, astonishment, astringent, atonement, attachment, attainment, attendant, banishment, basement, battlement, belligerent, bemusement, beneficent, benevolent, bereavement, betterment, bewilderment, blandishment, blatant, bombardment, brilliant, buoyant, celebrant, claimant, clairvoyant, Clement, client, coefficient, cogent, cognizant, coherent, coincident, combatant, commandment, commencement, commitment, compartment, competent, complacent, complainant, complaisant, complement, compliant, component, comportment, concealment, concomitant, concurrent, condiment, confident, confinement, consequent, consignment, consistent, consonant, constant, constituent, consultant, containment, contaminant, contentment, contestant, continent, contingent, convalescent, convenient, convent, convergent, conversant, coolant, copayment, corespondent, cormorant, correspondent, Courant, covenant, Crescent, crosscurrent, current, curtailment, debarment, debasement, decadent, decedent, decent, declarant, decongestant, defendant, deferment, defiant, deficient, defoliant, delinquent, deodorant, department, dependent, deployment, deportment, depressant, derailment, descendant, descendent, despondent, detachment, detergent, determent, determinant, deterrent, detriment, development, deviant, different, diligent, diminishment, disagreement, disappointment, disarmament, disbarment, disbursement, discernment, discordant, discouragement, disenchantment, disenfranchisement, disengagement, disestablishment, disgruntlement, disillusionment, disinfectant, disinvestment, dismantlement, dismemberment, disobedient, dispersant, displacement, dissident, dissonant, distant, divalent, divergent, divestment, docent, dominant, dormant, easement, ebullient, efferent, effervescent, efficient, effluent, elegant, element, elephant, eloquent, embankment, embarrassment, embayment, embellishment, embezzlement, embodiment, emergent, emigrant, eminent, emplacement, employment, empowerment, enactment, encampment, enchantment, encirclement, encouragement, encroachment, endangerment, endearment, endorsement, endowment, enforcement, engagement, enhancement, enjoyment, enlargement, enlightenment, enlistment, enrichment, enrollment, enslavement, entanglement, entertainment, enticement, entitlement, entombment, entrant, entrapment, entrenchment, environment, equipment, equivalent, errant, escapement, escarpment, esculent, establishment, estrangement, evanescent, evident, excellent, excitement, excrement, exigent, existent, exorbitant, expectant, expectorant, expedient, experiment, exponent, extant, extinguishment, extravagant, exuberant, exultant, Fabricant, fervent, figment, filament, flagrant, flamboyant, flatulent, flippant, fluorescent, formant, fragment, fragrant, fraudulent, frequent, fulfillment, gallant, garment, garnishment, giant, government, grandiloquent, grandparent, harassment, hesitant, hydrant, ignorant, immanent, immigrant, imminent, impairment, impatient, impeachment, impediment, impertinent, implement, important, impotent, impoundment, impoverishment, impressment, imprisonment, improvement, imprudent, inadvertent, incandescent, incessant, incident, incipient, incitement, inclement, incoherent, incompetent, inconsistent, incontinent, inconvenient, increment, incumbent, indecent, independent, indictment, indifferent, indigent, indignant, indolent, inducement, indulgent, inefficient, infant, informant, infotainment, infrequent, infringement, ingredient, inhabitant, inhalant, inherent, innocent, inpatient, insignificant, insistent, insolent, insolvent, installment, instant, instrument, insufficient, insurgent, integument, intelligent, intercurrent, interdependent, intermittent, internment, intersegment, intolerant, intransigent, invariant, investment, involvement, iridescent, irrelevant, irreverent, irritant, itinerant, jubilant, judgement, judgment, latent, leant, lenient, lieutenant, ligament, litigant, lubricant, lucent, luminescent, luxuriant, magnificent, malevolent, malignant, maltreatment, management, measurement, merchant, micromanagement, migrant, militant, miscreant, misgovernment, misjudgment, mismanagement, misstatement, mistreatment, moment, monovalent, monument, mordant, movement, mutant, nascent, negligent, noncombatant, nonexistent, nongovernment, nonmanagement, nonpayment, nonresident, nonviolent, nourishment, nutrient, obedient, observant, obsolescent, occupant, odorant, ointment, omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient, operant, opponent, opulent, ornament, orpiment, outpatient, outplacement, overconfident, overpayment, overstatement, oxidant, pageant, parchment, parent, parliament, participant, patent, patient, pavement, payment, peasant, penchant, pendant, penitent, pennant, percipient, permanent, persistent, pertinent, petulant, pheasant, pigment, piquant, placement, pleasant, pliant, poignant, pollutant, postponement, postretirement, potent, preadolescent, precedent, predicament, predominant, preeminent, pregnant, prejudgment, prepayment, prescient, present, presentment, prevalent, procurement, proficient, prominent, pronouncement, propellant, proponent, protestant, provident, prudent, prurient, pungent, punishment, puzzlement, quadrant, quiescent, quotient, radiant, rampant, readjustment, reagent, realignment, reappointment, reapportionment, rearmament, rearrangement, reassessment, reassignment, recalcitrant, recent, recipient, recombinant, recruitment, recurrent, redeployment, redevelopment, redundant, reemployment, reenactment, refinement, refreshment, refrigerant, refurbishment, Regent, regiment, registrant, reimbursement, reinforcement, reinstatement, reinvestment, relevant, reliant, reluctant, reminiscent, remnant, repayment, repellent, repentant, replacement, replenishment, repugnant, requirement, resentment, resettlement, resident, resilient, resistant, resonant, resplendent, respondent, restatement, resultant, resurgent, retardant, reticent, retirement, retrenchment, reverent, rodent, rudiment, ruminant, sacrament, salient, seafront, sealant, sediment, segment, semipermanent, sentiment, Sequent, sergeant, serpent, servant, settlement, shipment, significant, silent, solvent, somnolent, stagnant, statement, stimulant, strident, stringent, student, subcontinent, subsequent, subservient, succulent, sufficient, supergiant, superintendent, supplement, supplicant, suppressant, surfactant, talent, tangent, temperament, tenant, tenement, testament, tetravalent, tolerant, torrent, tournament, transcendent, transient, translucent, transparent, treatment, trenchant, trident, triumphant, truculent, tumescent, turbulent, tyrant, undercurrent, underdevelopment, underemployment, undergarment, underpayment, understatement, unemployment, unimportant, unpleasant, unrepentant, urgent, vacant, vagrant, valiant, variant, vehement, verdant, vibrant, vigilant, violent, virulent, warrant, wonderment. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-n-r-t-t-u" | |
-1 letter: taunt. | |
-2 letters: aunt, rant, runt, tarn, tart, taut, tuna, turn. | |
-3 letters: ant, art, att, nut, ran, rat, run, rut, tan, tar, tat, tau, tun, tut, urn, uta. | |
-4 letters: an, ar, at, na, nu, ta, un, ut. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-n-r-t-t-u" | |
+1 letter: tantrum, taunter, truants. | |
+2 letters: antirust, earthnut, naturist, rutilant, saturant, taciturn, tantrums, taunters, trapunto, truanted, truantry, truncate, turncoat, urticant. | |
+3 letters: antirusts, antitrust, antitumor, astronaut, earthnuts, fortunate, naturists, nurturant, outlearnt, outrating, reductant, reluctant, resultant, saturants, tarantula, transmute, trapuntos, tremulant, tribunate, truanting, truncated, truncates, turbinate, turnabout, turncoats, turntable, ultrathin, untreated, urticants, utterance. | |
+4 letters: adulterant, antihunter, antinature, aquatinter, astronauts, attenuator, counteract, denaturant, eructating, eructation, extenuator, intriguant, laundrette, lustrating, lustration, maturating, maturation, menstruate, nasturtium, natatorium, naturalist, naturopath, neutralist, neutrality, obturating, obturation, outstaring, outtrading, parturient, punctuator, quaternity, reductants, refutation, reputation, restaurant, resultants, saturating, saturation, scattergun, surfactant, tarantulae, tarantulas, tentacular, tournament, transmuted, transmutes, transudate, tribunates, triumphant, truantries, truncating, truncation, turbinated, turbinates, turnabouts, turntables, unartistic, understate, unsaturate, upstarting, urticating, urtication, utterances. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
| 1. Definition 2. Synonyms 3. Crosswords 4. Usage: Modern | 5. Usage: Commercial 6. Images: Photo Album 7. Quotations: Fiction 8. Quotations: Non-fiction | 9. Usage Frequency 10. Expressions 11. Expressions: Internet 12. Translations: Modern | 13. Translations: Ancient 14. Derivations 15. Rhymes 16. Anagrams | 17. Bibliography |
Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
