English Meaning & Definitions
A person who has escaped from a place or is in hiding, especially to avoid arrest or persecution.
- “The police launched a massive manhunt to capture the fugitive.”
- “He lived as a fugitive for years, constantly moving from city to city.”
Relating to or characteristic of a fugitive; fleeting or transitory in nature.
- “The fugitive slave laws were a source of great historical controversy.”
- “The artist captured the fugitive beauty of the sunset before it faded.”
Comprehensive Thesaurus Breakdown
Compare formal, informal, literary synonyms and register nuances for “fugitive”.
Derived from the Latin 'fugitivus', from 'fugere' meaning 'to flee'. It entered Middle English via Old French 'fugitif', originally describing someone who runs away from service, duty, or justice.
Think of a 'fugee' (refugee) who is 'tive' (active) in running away from the law.
Frequently Asked Questions About “fugitive”
1. What is the meaning of “fugitive” in English?
In English, fugitive (noun) is defined as: “A person who has escaped from a place or is in hiding, especially to avoid arrest or persecution.”.
2. How do you use “fugitive” in a sentence?
“The police launched a massive manhunt to capture the fugitive.”
4. What is the etymology and word origin of “fugitive”?
Derived from the Latin 'fugitivus', from 'fugere' meaning 'to flee'. It entered Middle English via Old French 'fugitif', originally describing someone who runs away from service, duty, or justice.
🇬🇧More English Words to English
View all English words →The base unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), equal to the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the caesium-133 atom.
A specific duration of time equal to one hour and forty-six minutes and twelve seconds.
The cardinal number equal to one thousand million (1,000,000,000), expressed in scientific notation as 10^9.
A specific duration of time equivalent to one hour and forty-six minutes.