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Webster 1913 Edition
Arrant
Ar′rant
,Adj.
[OE.
erraunt
, errant
, errand
, equiv. to E. errant
wandering, which was first applied to vagabonds, as an errant rogue
, an errant thief
, and hence passed gradually into its present and worse sense. See Errant
.] Notoriously or preëminently bad; thorough or downright, in a bad sense; shameless; unmitigated;
as, an
. arrant
rogue or cowardI discover an
arrant
laziness in my soul. Fuller.
2.
Thorough or downright, in a good sense.
[Obs.]
An
arrant
honest woman. Burton.
Webster 1828 Edition
Arrant
AR'RANT
,Adj.
Notorious, in an ill sense; infamous; mere; vile; as an arrant rogue or coward.
Definition 2024
arrant
arrant
English
Alternative forms
- arraunt (obsolete)
Adjective
arrant (comparative arranter, superlative arrantest)
- Utter; complete.
- arrant nonsense! [1708][2]
- Alternative spelling of errant
- circa 1600, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, scene 1:
- We are arrant knaves all; believe none of us.
- circa 1600, William Shakespeare, Hamlet, scene 1:
Usage notes
Particularly used in the phrase “arrant knaves”, quoting Hamlet, and “arrant nonsense”.[3]
Some dictionaries consider arrant simply an alternative form of errant, but in usage they have long since split.
The word has long been considered archaic, may be confused with errant, and is used primarily in clichés, on which basis some recommend against using it.
Translations
utter
|
errant — see errant
References
- ↑ OED
- ↑ Thomas Bennet, A Brief History of the Joint Use of Recompos'd Set Forms of Prayer...to wich is annexed a Discourse of the Gost of Prayer], p. 187
- ↑ Safire, 2006, considers “arrant nonsense” to be “wedded words”, a form of a fixed phrase.
- “arrant/errant”, Common Errors in English Usage, Paul Brians
- On Language: Arrant Nonsense, William Safire, January 22, 2006, New York Times
- Merriam–Webster’s dictionary of English usage, 1995, “errant, arrant”, pp. 406–407