: a person who flees a country or location to escape danger (such as war) or persecution : refugee
b
: a person (such as a suspect, witness, or defendant) involved in a criminal case who tries to elude law enforcement especially by fleeing the jurisdiction
called alsofugitive from justice
2
: something elusive or hard to find
Did you know?
Fugitive was adopted into English as both a noun and an adjective in the 14th century from the Latin adjective fugitivus, which itself comes from the verb fugere, meaning “to flee.”
transient applies to what is actually short in its duration or stay.
a hotel catering primarily to transient guests
transitory applies to what is by its nature or essence bound to change, pass, or come to an end.
fame in the movies is transitory
ephemeral implies striking brevity of life or duration.
many slang words are ephemeral
momentary suggests coming and going quickly and therefore being merely a brief interruption of a more enduring state.
my feelings of guilt were only momentary
fugitive and fleeting imply passing so quickly as to make apprehending difficult.
let a fugitive smile flit across his face
fleeting moments of joy
evanescent suggests a quick vanishing and an airy or fragile quality.
the story has an evanescent touch of whimsy that is lost in translation
Example Sentences
Adjective As he daydreamed, fugitive thoughts passed through his mind. that fugitive trait called artistic creativity Noun They discovered that he was a fugitive of the law.
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
East Point apartment when a fugitive task force made up of local law enforcement and federal authorities, including Hutchens, tried taking him into custody. Jozsef Papp, ajc, 4 Aug. 2022 Local authorities in San Diego enlisted the help of the U.S. Marshals in Dec. 2016 to join the manhunt and lead the fugitive investigation for McLeod. Haleigh Kochanski, The Arizona Republic, 30 Aug. 2022 Miami-Dade County Corrections Department records showed that the 6-foot-7 player — booked under his full, legal name Taurean Louis Waller-Prince — was picked up as a fugitive subject to extradition. David K. Li, NBC News, 26 Aug. 2022 Revealing footage and interviews uncover new layers of fugitive tech pioneer John McAfee's wild years on the run. Travis Bean, Forbes, 25 Aug. 2022 This documentary compiles revealing footage and interviews with fugitive programmer John McAfee to reveal new information about his years on the run. Olivia Mccormack, Washington Post, 24 Aug. 2022 March 14, 2012 - Greig pleads guilty to one charge of conspiracy to harbor a fugitive and two counts of identity theft.CNN, 23 Aug. 2022 The actor best known for his role as outlaw motorcycle club member Jax Teller on the FX drama can now be seen for the first time as fugitive Lin Ford in Apple's upcoming Shantaram. Nick Romano, EW.com, 15 Aug. 2022 Texas authorities are looking into medical records of Austin murder suspect and former fugitive Kaitlin Armstrong, who is accused of shooting the pro cyclist Anna Moriah ‘Mo’ Wilson in May, according to court records. Michael Ruiz, Fox News, 29 July 2022
Noun
The man was a fugitive, the officers told him, and his cellphone was seized. John H. Tucker, cleveland, 9 Aug. 2022 Polanski has been a fugitive since 1978, living mostly in France. Gene Maddaus, Variety, 18 July 2022 Michael Ray Tillman, 24, was indicted on a first-degree murder charge after he was arrested as a fugitive in Bismarck, North Dakota, according to the district attorney's office in Shelby County, Tennessee.Fox News, 1 July 2022 Officers from local, state, and federal agencies on Tuesday arrested Daronde Bethea, 30, of Brockton, a fugitive wanted on charges including robbery, home invasion, and assault charges, the Boston Police Department said in a statement. Grace Gilson, BostonGlobe.com, 31 Aug. 2022 El Salvadoran enforcement authorities have arrested Raymond McLeod, 37, a fugitive wanted by the San Diego Police Department for the 2016 murder of Krystal Mitchell, 30, from Phoenix. Haleigh Kochanski, The Arizona Republic, 30 Aug. 2022 John Tucker reports that the board has now proposed a new policy that would require officers to confirm the existence of an arrest warrant before stopping a fugitive. Mike Rose, cleveland, 10 Aug. 2022 Once a fugitive from US forces that sought to arrest him in Iraq, Sadr was believed to have been hiding in Iran from 2007. Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN, 1 Aug. 2022 Much of the film’s action is set in Vietnam, where Lee’s character Ma Seok-do travels to repatriate a fugitive, and while in the country uncovers a crime nest. Patrick Frater, Variety, 25 July 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Adjective and Noun
Middle English, from Middle French & Latin; Middle French fugitif, from Latin fugitivus, from fugitus, past participle of fugere to flee; akin to Greek pheugein to flee