refugee

[ref-yoo-jee, ref-yoo-jee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR refugee ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who flees for refuge or safety, especially to a foreign country, as in time of political upheaval, war, etc.

political refugee.

Origin of refugee

1675–85; < French réfugié, past participle of réfugier to take refuge. See refuge, -ee

Related formsref·u·gee·ism, nounpro·ref·u·gee, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for refugee

foreigner, alien, exile, expatriate, emigrant, evacuee, castaway, renegade, deserter, foundling, outlaw, fugitive, outcast, defector, escapee, leper, prodigal, maroon, derelict, runaway

Examples from the Web for refugee

Contemporary Examples of refugee

In 1996, Bourjerdi was granted political asylum and went to Australia as a refugee.
The Sydney Astrologer Turned Islamic Radical
Jacob Siegel
December 16, 2014
The refugee stories are compelling at first, but horrific details are numbing.
Inside the Smuggling Networks Flooding Europe with Refugees
Barbie Latza Nadeau
December 15, 2014
Today, she and her family are among the 13,500 Syrian refugee families living in Concern-supported housing in northern Lebanon.
Drawing on the Memories of Syrian Women
Masha Hamilton
November 26, 2014
Refugee camps played a crucial role during the Second Intifada.
Intifada 3.0: Growing Unrest and a Plot to Kill an Israeli Minister
Creede Newton
November 21, 2014
“The situation is no longer under control,” says Ehab, a resident of al-Amari refugee camp outside Ramallah.
Intifada 3.0: Growing Unrest and a Plot to Kill an Israeli Minister
Creede Newton
November 21, 2014

Historical Examples of refugee

Some said his father was a Russian refugee, his mother a Mongol woman.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science April 1930
Various
He had no wish to provoke a conflict, but he had no thought of surrendering the refugee.
Billy Topsail & Company
Norman Duncan
His father was a refugee from France, and desired to let a part of his house.
Shawl-Straps
Louisa M. Alcott
Never mind, I'll pay you as much as a refugee—within reason.
Greener Than You Think
Ward Moore
Mr. Grindrod and I engaged in reading together "The Refugee."
A Journey to America in 1834
Robert Heywood

British Dictionary definitions for refugee

refugee

noun

a person who has fled from some danger or problem, esp political persecutionrefugees from Rwanda
(as modifier)a refugee camp; a refugee problem

Derived Formsrefugeeism, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for refugee

1680s, from French refugié, noun use of past participle of refugier "to take shelter, protect," from Old French refuge (see refuge). First applied to French Huguenots who migrated after the revocation (1685) of the Edict of Nantes. The word meant "one seeking asylum," till 1914, when it evolved to mean "one fleeing home" (first applied in this sense to civilians in Flanders heading west to escape fighting in World War I). In Australian slang from World War II, reffo.