runagate


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run·a·gate

 (rŭn′ə-gāt′)
n.
1. A renegade or deserter.
2. A vagabond.

[Alteration of obsolete renegate, renegade (influenced by run agate, on the way), from Middle English, from Medieval Latin renegātus; see renegade.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

runagate

(ˈrʌnəˌɡeɪt)
n
(Historical Terms) archaic
a. a vagabond, fugitive, or renegade
b. (as modifier): a runagate priest.
[C16: variant (influenced by run) of renegade]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

run•a•gate

(ˈrʌn əˌgeɪt)

n.
1. a fugitive or runaway.
2. a vagabond or wanderer.
[1520–30; run (v.) + obsolete agate away]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

runagate

noun
A person who has defected:
Informal: rat.
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
References in classic literature ?
``By the light of heaven!'' said Prince John to Hubert, ``an thou suffer that runagate knave to overcome thee, thou art worthy of the gallows!''
Having thus given an account of the colony in general, and pretty much of my runagate Englishmen, I must say something of the Spaniards, who were the main body of the family, and in whose story there are some incidents also remarkable enough.
Runagate, Runagate: For Tenor and Chamber Ensemble.
It was technically and thematically propelled by autobiographical poems such as Hayden's "Those Winter Sundays"; by Hayden's explorations into Latin American and Hispanic culture; by his fascination with African American history, as in "Kodachromes of the Island," and the ritualistic art of black music, as in "Homage to the Empress of the Blues"; and by his use of historical narratives, as in "Runagate Runagate," and oratory, as in "Frederick Douglass." Hayden's dramas of conflict between elders and sons, his explorations of Mexican landscapes, his appropriation of the oratory of Frederick Douglass and the structures of slave narratives, as well as his celebration of the blues, clearly provided inspiration and literary templates for the early Wright.
Also, both Voada and a janissary consider Ward a "false runagate." The janissary's assessment is particularly important not only because he--by definition, a convert from Christianity--is uniquely qualified to judge the authenticity of converted loyalty, but also because he overhears Ward's threat (seditious from a Turkish perspective but patriotic from an English one) to "betray this town, [and] blow up the castle" (13.94).
"[W] ho knows his mind, / The Syrian runagate I trust this to?" frets Karshish (11.
Our days shaped by unseen movement in the landscape, cold-cocked by brightness coming over a hill, wild & steady as a runagate palomino spooked by something in the trees unsaid.
Ranulf the Unready also know as Viscount Linley also known as Rannie Runagate also known as Arch Duke R.
associate with the riffraff that fills this house; And a damned sight too good for you, my pet; Do you think I'd let her marry any of this runagate gang you spend your time with?