rogue

1 of 3

adjective

1
: resembling or suggesting a rogue elephant especially in being isolated, aberrant, dangerous, or uncontrollable
capsized by a rogue wave
2
: corrupt, dishonest
rogue cops
3
: of or being a nation whose leaders defy international law or norms of international behavior
rogue states

rogue

2 of 3

noun

1
: a dishonest or worthless person : scoundrel
2
: a mischievous person : scamp
3
4
: a horse inclined to shirk or misbehave
5
: an individual exhibiting a chance and usually inferior biological variation
roguish adjective
roguishly adverb
roguishness noun

rogue

3 of 3

verb

rogued; roguing or rogueing

intransitive verb

: to weed out inferior, diseased, or nontypical individuals from a crop plant or a field
Phrases
go rogue
: to begin to behave in an independent or uncontrolled way that is not authorized, normal, or expected
Before the Clemson Tigers played Notre Dame in Arlington, Texas on Saturday, Clark [a bald eagle] was supposed to fly around the stadium, high above people's heads. But instead, he went rogue and decided to perch on two unsuspecting fans.Nicole Gallucci
Anders had been sent to the Amazon to monitor the program's progress under the formidable Dr. Annick Swensen (who may have gone rogue and is no longer returning the company's calls).Yvonne Zipp
Whenever a member of a group goes rogue, you can be absolutely certain that other members of that group will pop up with the "bad apple" defense, as in, "Well, sure, there's a few bad apples in every bunch, but that's the exception."Christine Flowers

Examples of rogue in a Sentence

Adjective Americans assume that our country was built by rogue males but there's more to the breed than wanderlust and rugged individualism. Florence King, National Review, 27 Aug. 2007
Perhaps more important, defense planners worried for the past year about the instability of the Soviet Union and the nightmare that a rogue Soviet submarine skipper might decide on his own to launch close to 200 warheads at U.S. targets. John Barry, Newsweek, 3 June 1991
In "The In-Laws," Alan Arkin is a dentist led astray by a rogue C.I.A. operative …, whose son his daughter is marrying, and he winds up dodging bullets on a Caribbean island. Terrence Rafferty, New Yorker, 30 July 1990
a rogue administrator who took bribes to falsify paperwork Noun Many of the vagabonds were rogues and cheaters of various kinds, and formed a subcommunity on the fringes of official society. Charles Barber, Early Modern English, 1976
Cartier decided that the two boys were a choice pair of rogues who would probably try to run him aground if taken as pilots, and that he would dispense with their services. Samuel Eliot Morison, The European Discovery of America, 1971
His account of their discoveries in the low life of a seaport town would have made a charming book, and in the various characters that came their way the student might easily have found matter for a very complete dictionary of rogues. W. Somerset Maugham, Moon and Sixpence, 1919
He's a lovable old rogue. a rogue who had nothing but contempt for people who made their living honestly
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
At least five members of a rogue security brigade seeking the ouster of Haiti’s prime minister died Wednesday in an exchange of gunfire with police, who spent a third day beating back violent protests across the country. Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald, 8 Feb. 2024 The first images of rogue worlds came in the 2000s, when astronomers spotted a few objects still glowing in infrared light from the heat of their formation. Charlie Wood, WIRED, 31 Dec. 2023 The paper’s owner, Rupert Murdoch, dismissed the wrongdoing as the work of two rogue employees. Jill Lawless, Fortune Europe, 18 Dec. 2023 One breakdown, one bad pass-off, or one rogue decision to carry a receiver can turn this game. Dieter Kurtenbach, The Mercury News, 10 Feb. 2024 The lid also screws on tightly to create a seal that will protect against rogue water. Alyssa Grabinski, Peoplemag, 2 Feb. 2024 Isiah and Nate are caught and have to escape rogue justice before they get killed. Ira Porter, The Christian Science Monitor, 1 Feb. 2024 That’s down to the fearless, uninhibited character work by Johnson as rogue CIA officer Bob Stone, who has to be one of the oddest birds this side of a Looney Tunes cartoon. Miami Staff, Miami Herald, 30 Jan. 2024 In theory—the sphere where much debate about dangerously powerful AI currently resides—this might provide a powerful new way to prevent rogue nations or irresponsible companies from secretly developing dangerous AI. Will Knight, WIRED, 25 Jan. 2024
Noun
Accompanying him in some videos were members of the Haitian Environment Ministry’s security brigade (BSAP), raising fears of a state security force gone rogue. Caitlin Stephen Hu, CNN, 4 Mar. 2024 Tran recalled that Magimel went rogue while shooting the complex finale. Elisabeth Vincentelli, New York Times, 19 Feb. 2024 New houses sprouted on small vacant lots, and rogue additions allowed generations of families to share one roof or create a source of income from rental units. Alicia Victoria Lozano, NBC News, 6 Feb. 2024 So, of course, should anyone who has watched Joe Biden act as a lawless rogue, dispense public money without congressional appropriations like a king, and threaten to borrow money without the consent of Congress and issue debt backed only by executive fiat. Dan McLaughlin, National Review, 23 Jan. 2024 As more organizations embrace generative AI tools—and as more users implement rogue generative AI solutions that haven’t been vetted or sanctioned—this level of protection is crucial to minimize the risk of compromising their data security posture. Tony Bradley, Forbes, 20 Feb. 2024 With the exceptions of a nearby disembodied face and rogue splotches, this woman is floating on otherwise untouched canvas. Denise Snodell, Kansas City Star, 14 Feb. 2024 In what may be the most clichéd damsel-in-distress scene in any rom-com, wedding planner Mary Fiore (Jennifer Lopez) gets her Gucci heel stuck in a manhole cover at the same exact moment a rogue dumpster is barreling down a hilly San Francisco street, heading right toward her. Cristina Everett, EW.com, 9 Feb. 2024 America’s partners on the front lines of a potential conflict with China, to say nothing of China itself, are watching how America responds to challenges from revisionist rogue states and its near-peer competitors. Noah Rothman, National Review, 23 Jan. 2024
Verb
Written for the home gardener and the more seasoned horticulturist alike, this book covers crop selection, pollination, roguing, and the processes of harvesting and storing seeds, honoring traditions, and encouraging a joy for understanding of the art and science of seed saving. Kristin Guy, Sunset Magazine, 28 Dec. 2023 The world faces myriad existential threats of varying likelihoods, from pandemics and nuclear war to rogue artificial intelligence and asteroid collisions. Globe Columnist, BostonGlobe.com, 21 July 2023 No more scrambling at the end of the month to match potentially unpaid invoices to rogue payments. Peter Nesbitt, Forbes, 23 Jan. 2023 This trust has been betrayed time and time again, from tame regulators to rogue central bankers to corrupt politicians. WSJ, 6 Dec. 2022 In ‘Seven Samurai,’ Toshiro Mifune plays that rogue samurai who becomes the heart of the team. Michael Ordoña, Los Angeles Times, 16 Nov. 2022 Zero-Trust protects against both account compromises and rogue internal accounts. Expert Panel®, Forbes, 24 June 2021 Trump is not a pharmaceutical manufacturer that can go rogue and produce a vaccine. Michael Brendan Dougherty, National Review, 16 Sep. 2020 But a conservative Court of Appeals panel could rogue and decide to disobey Roe and Casey. Dylan Matthews, Vox, 11 July 2018

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'rogue.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

derivative of rogue entry 2

Noun

of obscure origin

Verb

derivative of rogue entry 2

First Known Use

Adjective

1835, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1561, in the meaning defined at sense 3

Verb

1766, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of rogue was in 1561

Dictionary Entries Near rogue

Cite this Entry

“Rogue.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/rogue. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

rogue

noun
ˈrōg
1
: a dishonest or wicked person
2
: a mischievous individual

Geographical Definition

Rogue

geographical name

river about 200 miles (320 kilometers) long in southwestern Oregon rising in Crater Lake National Park and flowing west and southwest into the Pacific Ocean

More from Merriam-Webster on rogue

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!