as in traitor
a person who abandons a cause or organization usually without right
we had orders to find and capture the deserters before they could reveal our location
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Recent Examples of deserter
In 1945, three men — two Jewish refugees living in Brooklyn and one Nazi deserter — enlisted in the Office of Strategic Services, a precursor to the Central Intelligence Agency in the United States.
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Lauren Liebhaber, Miami Herald, 2 Oct. 2025
Despite opposition to busing, particularly among White families who comprised much of Louisville's Catholic population, Archbishop McDonough vowed in 1974 that his schools would not become the home of public school deserters.
—Krista Johnson, Louisville Courier Journal, 4 Sep. 2025
When Bloomberg asked 5,000 early Model 3 owners that year what cars used to be in their driveway, the survey found an alarming number of BMW deserters.
—Bloomberg, Mercury News, 4 Aug. 2025
Lincoln made frequent stops in the county and tried cases there as an attorney, according to the city, and Marshall was the site of an extended dispute during the Civil War involving Union Army deserters.
—John Tuohy, IndyStar, 3 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for deserter
Recent Examples of Synonyms for deserter
Noun
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Hemphill spoke alongside former Capitol police officer Winston Pingeon, who described being punched in the face, pepper sprayed, and called a traitor by the rioters.—
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The J6ers were not insurrectionists, traitors, and miscreants but patriots, heroes, and innocents.—
Noun
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Last December, armed rebels previously aligned with terror groups finally ousted Assad from power after a 14 year civil war.—
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There was a buffer zone where French soldiers were and then the north was held by rebel groups.—
Noun
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For most of DeSantis’ term, the state has been governed his desire to serve the needs of the wealthy elite while burnishing his credentials as an audacious renegade.—
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Brooks Koepka’s decision to leave LIV Golf years after becoming one of the notable faces to join the renegade league sent shock waves through the sport this week.—
Noun
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Rolapp’s bold approach created waves this week when the tour reinstated LIV defector Brook Koepka, a five-time major winner and worldwide star.—
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Brooks Koepka, one of the big names who decamped from the PGA Tour four years ago for the upstart LIV, is returning to the PGA Tour later this month thanks to a new policy meant to welcome select LIV defectors back.—
Cite this Entry
“Deserter.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/deserter. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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