Meanings
comparative more traitorous · superlative most traitorous · alternative traitourous · alternative traiterous
- Characteristic of a traitor; disloyal.
I tel you true my hart is ſwolne with wrath, On this ſame theeuish villain Tamburlain. And of that false Coſroe, my traiterous brother, Would it not grieue a King to be so abuſ’d?
c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act II, scene ii1 more example
I that inceſtuous, that adulterate beaſt, / With witchcraft of his wits, with trayterous gifts, / O wicked wit, and giftes that haue the power / So to ſeduce; wonne to his ſhamefull luſt / The will of my moſt ſeeming vertuous Queene; [...]
c. 1599–1602 (date written), William Shakespeare, The Tragicall Historie of Hamlet, Prince of Denmarke: […] (Second Quarto), London: […] I[ames] R[oberts] for N[icholas] L[ing] […], published 1604, →OCLC, [Act I, scene v]Synonyms: infidelitous, Judaslike, traitorsome, treacherous, booky, dastardly, disleal, disloyal
- lawConstituting treason; treasonable or seditious.
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveCharacteristic of a traitor; disloyal.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectivehaving the character of, or characteristic of, a traitor
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Old Frenchtraitros
- Anglo-Normantraiterous
- Middle Englishtrayterous
- Englishtraitorous
From Middle English trayterous, traytrous, (also Middle English traytours, treytours), from Anglo-Norman traiterous, traitourous and Old French traitros.
More words from Middle English, Anglo-Norman, Old French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek προδοτικός
- προδοτικός (prodotikós)characteristic of a traitor
Bulgarian предателски
- предателски (predatelski)characteristic of a traitor
Catalan traïdor
- traïdorcharacteristic of a traitor
Danish forræderisk
- forræderiskcharacteristic of a traitor
German verräterisch, treulos
- verräterischcharacteristic of a traitor
- treuloscharacteristic of a traitor
- untreucharacteristic of a traitor
Greek προδοτικός, στασιαστικός
- προδοτικός (prodotikós)characteristic of a traitor
- στασιαστικός (stasiastikós)law: constituting treason; treasonable or seditious
- ανατρεπτικός (anatreptikós)law: constituting treason; treasonable or seditious
Norwegian Bokmål forrædersk, forræderisk
- forræderskcharacteristic of a traitor
- forræderiskcharacteristic of a traitor
Portuguese traiçoeiro, traidor
- traiçoeirocharacteristic of a traitor
- traidorcharacteristic of a traitor
Spanish traicionero, traidor
- traicionerocharacteristic of a traitor
- traidorcharacteristic of a traitor
- kalécharacteristic of a traitor
- magancés (disused)characteristic of a traitor
Swedish förrädisk
- förrädiskcharacteristic of a traitor
Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with traitorous
All rhymes →Cite this entry
traitorous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/traitorous
“traitorous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/traitorous. Accessed November 3, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “traitorous,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/traitorous.
Source: traitorous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.