maverick

American  

[mav-er-ik, mav-rik] / ˈmæv ər ɪk, ˈmæv rɪk /

noun

1. Southwestern U.S. an unbranded calf, cow, or steer, especially an unbranded calf that is separated from its mother.

2. 1. a lone dissenter, such as an intellectual, an artist, or a politician, who takes an independent stand apart from their peers.

      His unusual techniques made him a maverick of modern dance.

   2. a person pursuing rebellious, even potentially disruptive, policies or ideas.

      You can't muzzle a maverick.

3. Maverick, an electro-optically guided U.S. air-to-ground tactical missile for destroying tanks and other hardened targets at ranges up to 15 miles (24 km).

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adjective

1. unorthodox, unconventional, or nonconformist.

   She had a reputation as a maverick fiscal conservative willing to raise taxes.

maverick British  

/ ˈmævərɪk /

noun

1. (in US and Canadian cattle-raising regions) an unbranded animal, esp a stray calf

2. 1. a person of independent or unorthodox views

   2. ( as modifier )

      a maverick politician

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Pop Culture

—Dallas Mavericks: American professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas, a member of the National Basketball Association (NBA). — Maverick : popular American TV series (1957–62) set in the Wild West that inspired a film of the same name (1994). —Maverick: Nickname and call sign of ace fighter pilot, played by Tom Cruise, in the film Top Gun (1986). —Ford Maverick: Stylish, youthfully designed mid-size car made in the late 1960s and ‘70s in North America and Brazil.

Etymology

Origin of maverick

An Americanism dating back to 1865–70; named after Samuel A. Maverick (1803–70), Texas pioneer who left his calves unbranded

Example Sentences

LIV was a company full of bold thinkers and innovators and mavericks who weren’t afraid to leave predictable jobs to move to this opportunity.

From The Wall Street Journal

He faces competition from fellow rap maverick Tyler, The Creator with his wildly inventive Chromakopia; and reunited hip-hop duo Clipse, whose Let God Sort Em Out is their first release since 2009.

From BBC

Predominantly kits were kept to a single colour - two if you were feeling bold, three if you were feeling like a maverick.

From BBC

On his 21st birthday, in 1932, he came into a sizable inheritance that allowed him to live where he wanted and indulge his maverick aesthetic proclivities.

From The Wall Street Journal

Farrells, the architecture practice he founded, announced his death "with deep sadness", saying: "Terry was frequently called a maverick, radical and a non-conformist which he relished."

From BBC