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vagabond

vagabond

15 7.6
A person who moves from place to place without a home or job
  • noun
  • /ˈvæɡəˌbɑnd/
translation icon : vagabundo
  • Living as a vagabond, she found joy in exploring different cultures and meeting new people.
  • the vagabond life

He's this dark, dangerous Vagabond character, getting into trouble, getting into fights.

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Examples

  • If these services were cut, many of them would be homeless and vagabonds across America.

    Blog text (4)
  • Many people consider him a vagabond because he never stays in one place for long.

  • I want to be free, George, to be a vagabond of the air.

  • "Thank you, master, thank you, kind sir," the vagabond said, and moved on.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • I'm not a vagabond come to beg.

  • Three years later, his first book, Rough Living: Tips and Tales of a Vagabond, was published.

    Blog text (24)
  • There's food enough for all the vagabonds wandering here.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • In this way, we are witnessing the birth of an internationally homeless class, enduring vagabond lives along the train routes through Mexico.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Henry Belt suddenly seemed a rather pitiful creature, a poor vagabond suited only for drunken bluster.

    Fiction book (1992)
  • The vagabond traveled from city to city, seeking new adventures and experiences.

Synonyms

drifter
vsvagabond
46 5.9

A person who moves from place to place and has no permanent home or steady job

is identical in meaning with no difference shown in the descriptions
tramp
vsvagabond
  • Informal
28 6.1

A person who has no home and travels, often begging or doing casual work

is similar but does not imply surviving mainly by begging or casual work
nomad
vsvagabond
27 4.4

A person who moves from place to place to find food or work

is an individual who wanders without steady home or regular work
vagrant
vsvagabond
25 7.7

A person who has no home and moves from place to place, often begging

is a general term for someone moving without fixed home, not tied to begging
wanderer
vsvagabond
23 3.9

A person who travels without a fixed home or purpose

is about moving without a fixed home and especially lacking steady work
rover
vsvagabond
6 7.0

A person who moves from place to place and has no fixed home

is similar but also highlights absence of regular employment
derelict
vsvagabond
3 8.4

A person who has no home or job and is ignored by other people

is chiefly a wanderer rather than someone defined by social neglect
rolling stone
vsvagabond
2 4.6

A person who moves often and does not stay in one place

emphasizes lack of fixed home and regular employment rather than just change
roamer
vsvagabond
1 5.1

A person who moves from place to place without staying long

is more about lacking a fixed home and regular employment
floater
vsvagabond
1 8.3

A person who moves from place to place without a home

is the same idea but focuses on lack of regular employment specifically
saddle tramp
vsvagabond
  • US
1 9.6

A person who travels from place to place on horseback without a fixed home

is a general wanderer not tied to horseback or cowboy life
supertramp
vsvagabond
  • Archaic
9.1

A person who travels without a home and lives by odd jobs

is a general wanderer not specifically living by odd jobs
peripatetic
vsvagabond
9.5

A person who travels from place to place for work

is about wandering without a fixed home and lacking regular employment
clochard
vsvagabond
  • Offensive
9.9

A homeless person who lives on the street, often in Paris

is the general wandering type not specific to one city or culture

Antonyms

108 4.1

A person who moves to a new area to live and set up a home

8 5.5

A person who likes to stay at home rather than go out

How Nomadic

vagabond
15 7.6
vagrant
25 7.7
wanderer
23 3.9
traveler
  • US
286 1.0
resident
1.8

Surface Forms

vagabond singular
vagabonds plural

Etymology

Vagabond comes from the old Latin verb vagari meaning 'to wander', the same root as vagrant. So a vagabond is someone who moves from place to place with no fixed home.