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recreant

Quick answer

As an adjective, recreant means having admitted defeat and surrendered. As a noun, it means somebody who is recreant, who yields in combat.

Meanings of recreant

6 meanings

now rarepoeticHaving admitted defeat and surrendered; defeated.
now poeticliteraryUnfaithful to someone, or to one's duties or honour; disloyal, false.
Having deserted a cause or principle
“some provinces had proved recreant”
“renegade supporters of the usurper”
Similar: renegade
Lacking even the rudiments of courage; abjectly fearful
“the craven fellow turned and ran”
“a craven proposal to raise the white flag”
“this recreant knight”
Similar: craven

Somebody who is recreant, who yields in combat; a coward or traitor.
A disloyal person who betrays or deserts their cause or religion or political party or friend etc.person
Similar: deserter, apostate, renegade, turncoat, ratter

Meanings from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0).