Deserter

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Deserter \De*sert"er\ (d[-e]*z[~e]rt"[~e]r), n.
     One who forsakes a duty, a cause or a party, a friend, or any
     one to whom he owes service; especially, a soldier or a
     seaman who abandons the service without leave; one guilty of
     desertion.
     [1913 Webster]



From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  deserter
       n 1: a disloyal person who betrays or deserts his cause or
            religion or political party or friend etc. [syn: {apostate},
             {renegade}, {turncoat}, {recreant}, {ratter}]
       2: a person who abandons their duty (as on a military post)
          [syn: {defector}]

From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:

  51 Moby Thesaurus words for "deserter":
     Sabbath-breaker, absconder, apostasy, apostate, atheist,
     backslider, betrayal, blasphemer, bolt, bolter, breakaway,
     collaborationist, collaborator, convert, defection, defector,
     dereliction, desertion, escapee, fifth columnist, fugitive,
     mugwump, outlaw, proselyte, quisling, rat, ratting, recidivist,
     recreant, renegade, renegado, renegate, reversionist, runagate,
     runaway, sacrilegist, schism, schismatic, seceder, secession,
     secessionist, separatist, strikebreaker, tergiversant,
     tergiversator, traitor, turnabout, turncoat, turntail, unbeliever,
     walkout
  
  

From Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856) [bouvier]:

  DESERTER. One who abandons his post; as, a soldier who abandons the public 
  service without leave; or a sailor who abandons a ship when he has engaged 
  to serve.