traitor

English

Alternative forms

traitour (obsolete)

Etymology

From Middle English traitor, traitour, traytour, from Old French traïtor (French traître), from Latin trāditor. Displaced native Middle English swike from Old English swica (“traitor”), and Middle English proditour and traditour borrowed directly from Latin. The general Old English word denoting "traitor" was lǣwa or lǣwend. Doublet of traditor.

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA^(key): /ˈtɹeɪtə(ɹ)/
(US) enPR: trā′tər, IPA^(key): /ˈtɹeɪtɚ/, [ˈtʰɹeɪɾɚ]
Homophone: trader (in dialects with flapping)
- Audio (US): (file)
Rhymes: -eɪtə(ɹ)

Noun

traitor (plural traitors)

Someone who violates an allegiance and betrays their country; someone guilty of treason; one who, in breach of trust, delivers their country to an enemy, or yields up any fort or place entrusted to their defense, or surrenders an army or body of troops to the enemy, unless when vanquished.
After World War I, the communists and Jews were accused to be traitors by the German right wing (the "stab-in-the-back myth"), ultimately culminating in their persecution and massacre.
- 1595 December 9 (first known performance), [William Shakespeare], The Tragedie of King Richard the Second. […] (First Quarto), London: […] Valentine Simmes for Androw Wise, […], published 1597, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:
  My Lord of Hereford here whom you call King, / Is a foule traitour to proud Herefords King, / And if you crowne him let me propheſie, / The bloud of Engliſh ſhall manure the ground, / And future ages groane for this foule act, [...]
- 2017 October 8, “Confederacy” (14:45 from the start), in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver‎^[1], season 4, episode 26, John Oliver (actor), via HBO:
  Yes, that was Vice President Spiro Agnew commemorating the "loyalty" of literal traitors. But what can you really expect from a man whose name rearranged spells "grow a penis."
Someone who takes arms and levies war against their country; or one who aids an enemy in conquering their country.
(by extension) One who betrays any confidence or trust.
- 2019, Patricia Taxxon (lyrics and music), “Cold Water”, in Doraemon:
  It's second nature now to think myself a traitor
  To myself, to all I've ever burdened with my rotting visage
  I can't breathe, the weight of all I've disappointed crushes me
  If I were happy, it would feel as if I couldn't trust me
- 2021, Olivia Rodrigo, Dan Nigro (lyrics and music), “Traitor”, in Sour‎^[2], performed by Olivia Rodrigo:
  It took you two weeks
  To go off and date her
  Guess you didn't cheat
  But you're still, you're still a traitor
  Yeah, you're still a traitor

Synonyms

(all senses): Benedict Arnold (US), quisling, Judas
(one who betrays a trust): betrayer, fink, snake, snake in the grass

Hyponyms

race traitor; see also Thesaurus:informant

Derived terms

Translations

one who betrays; a betrayer

Afrikaans: verraaier
Albanian: tradhtar (sq) m
Arabic: خَائِن m (ḵāʔin), خَائِنَة f (ḵāʔina), غَدَّار m (ḡaddār), غَدَّارَة f (ḡaddāra)
Aramaic: ܡܫܠܡܢܐ m
Armenian: դավաճան (hy) (davačan)
Azerbaijani: satqın, xain (az)
Basque: saltzaile
Belarusian: здра́днік m (zdrádnik), здра́дніца f (zdrádnica)
Bengali: গদ্দার (bn) (goddar)
Breton: treitour (br) m, treitourez f
Bulgarian: преда́тел (bg) m (predátel), преда́телка f (predátelka), изме́нник (bg) m (izménnik), изме́нничка f (izménnička), изме́нница f (izménnica)
Catalan: traïdor (ca) m, traïdora (ca) f
Chechen: please add this translation if you can
Chinese:
Mandarin: 叛徒 (zh) (pàntú), 賣國賊／卖国贼 (zh) (màiguózéi), 背叛者 (zh) (bèipànzhě), 國賊／国贼 (zh) (guózéi), 逆賊／逆贼 (zh) (nìzéi)
Cornish: traytour m, traytoures f
Crimean Tatar: please add this translation if you can
Czech: zrádce (cs) m, zrádkyně (cs) f, vlastizrádce m, vlastizrádkyně f, velezrádce m, velezrádkyně f
Danish: forræder c
Dutch: verrader (nl) m
Esperanto: perfidulo, perfidulino (female)
Estonian: reetur, äraandja
Finnish: maanpetturi, petturi (fi)
French: traître (fr) m, traîtresse (fr) f
Galician: treidor m, catralvo m, turdio m, tredo m, aleive m, ransoño m, suiño m
Georgian: მოღალატე (moɣalaṭe)
German: Verräter (de) m, Verräterin (de) f,
Greek: προδότης (el) m (prodótis), δοσίλογος (el) m (dosílogos)
Ancient: προδότης m (prodótēs), προδότις f (prodótis)
Haitian Creole: trèt
Hebrew: בּוֹגֵד (he) m (bogéd)
Hindi: ग़द्दार m (ġaddār), द्रोही (hi) f (drohī), विद्रोही (hi) f (vidrohī), देशद्रोही (hi) (deśadrohī)
Hungarian: áruló (hu)
Icelandic: svikari m
Ido: trahizanto (io), trahizinto, trahizero (io), trahizemo
Indonesian: pengkhianat (id)
Irish: ^{(please verify)} fealltóir m, ^{(please verify)} tréatúir m
Italian: traditore (it) m, traditrice (it) f, voltagabbana (it) m or f, banderuola (it) f, giravolta (it) f, proditore m, proditrice f
Japanese: 売国奴 (ja) (ばいこくど, baikokudo), 非国民 (ja) (ひこくみん, hikokumin), 国賊 (ja) (こくぞく, kokuzoku), 反逆者 (ja) (はんぎゃくしゃ, hangyakusha), 裏切り者 (ja) (うらぎりもの, uragirimono), 逆賊 (ja) (gyakuzoku)
Kazakh: сатқын (satqyn)
Khmer: អ្នកក្បត់ (nĕək kbɑt)
Korean: 배반자(背反者) (ko) (baebanja), 매국노(賣國奴) (ko) (maegungno), 국적 (國賊) (ko) (gukjeok)
Kyrgyz: чыккынчы (ky) (cıkkıncı)
Lao: ຜູ້ທໍລະຍົດ (phū thǭ la nyot)
Latin: prōditor m, prōditrīx f, trāditor m, trāditrīx f,
Latvian: nodevējs m, nodevēja f
Lithuanian: išdavikas m, išdavikė f
Macedonian: предавник m (predavnik), предавничка f (predavnička), издајник m (izdajnik), издајничка f (izdajnička)
Malay: pembelot, penderhaka, pengkhianat
Malayalam: ഒറ്റുകാരൻ (ml) m (oṟṟukāraṉ)
Maltese: please add this translation if you can
Maori: kaikaiwaiū
Mongolian:
Cyrillic: урвагч (mn) (urvagč)
Nepali: देशद्रोही (deśdrohī), गद्दार (ne) (gaddār)
Norwegian:
Bokmål: sviker (no) m, forræder (no)

Nynorsk: svikar m, forrædar (nn) m
Occitan: traïdor (oc) m, traïdoira f, traite (oc) m, traita f
Old English: lǣwa m
Pashto: خاين (ps) m (xāyen), غدار (ps) m (ǧadār)
Persian:
Iranian Persian: خائِن (fa) (xâ'en), غَدَّار (fa) (ğaddâr), خِیانَت‌کار (xiyânat-kâr)
Polish: zdrajca (pl) m, zdrajczyni (pl) f, zaprzaniec (pl) m, sprzedawczyk (pl) m, konfident (pl)
Portuguese: traidor (pt), traidora f
Romanian: trădător (ro) m, trădătoare (ro) f
Russian: преда́тель (ru) m (predátelʹ), преда́тельница (ru) f (predátelʹnica), изме́нник (ru) m (izménnik), изме́нница (ru) f (izménnica)
Sanskrit: पक्षहर (sa) m (pakṣahara), द्रोहप्रवेशक m (drohapraveśaka), राजद्रोही m (rājadrohī)
Scottish Gaelic: ^{(please verify)} truthair, * Scottish Gaelic: brathadair m
Serbo-Croatian:
Cyrillic: ѝзда̄јнӣк m, ѝздајица f, ѝзда̄јница f

Roman: ìzdājnīk (sh) m, ìzdajica (sh) f, ìzdājnica f
Slovak: zradca m, zradkyňa f
Slovene: izdajalec (sl) m, izdajalka f
Spanish: traidor (es) m, traidora (es) f, serpiente (es) m or f (figurative), proditor m
Swedish: förrädare (sv) c, quisling (sv) c
Tagalog: traidor
Tajik: хоин (xoyin), хиёнаткор (xiyonatkor), хиёнатгар (xiyonatgar)
Tamil: துரோகி (ta) (turōki), தேசத்துரோகி (tēcatturōki)
Telugu: ద్రోహి (te) (drōhi), దేశద్రోహి (te) (dēśadrōhi)
Thai: กบฏ (th) (gà-bòt), ผู้ทรยศ (pûu-tɔɔ-rá-yót), คน ทรยศ (kon tɔɔ-rá-yót)
Turkish: hain (tr), sadakâtsiz, satkın (tr)
Turkmen: haýyn
Ukrainian: зра́дник m (zrádnyk), зра́дниця f (zrádnycja)
Urdu: غَدَّار m (ġaddār), خِیانَت گَر m (xiyānat gar)
Uyghur: خائىن (xa'in), ساتقىن (satqin)
Uzbek: xoin (uz), sotqin (uz), xiyonatchi (uz), xiyonatkor (uz)
Vietnamese: kẻ phản bội
Walloon: traite (wa) m or f
Welsh: bradwr m
Yiddish: פֿאַררעטער (yi) m (farreter)
Zazaki: xayın c, ğedar c

Verb

traitor (third-person singular simple present traitors, present participle traitoring, simple past and past participle traitored)

To act the traitor toward; to betray; to deceive.

Translations

betray — see betray

Adjective

traitor (comparative more traitor, superlative most traitor)

Traitorous.
- 1735, Alexander Pope, “The Second Satire of Dr. John Donne”, in The Works of Mr. Alexander Pope, volume II, London: […] J. Wright, for Lawton Gilliver […], →OCLC:
  to find a subject staid and wise
  Already half turn'd traitor by surprise

Translations

traitorous

Bulgarian: предателски (bg) (predatelski)
Catalan: traïdor (ca)
Dutch: verraderlijk (nl), verraderlijke (nl)
Finnish: petollinen (fi)
Greek: προδοτικός (el) (prodotikós)
Macedonian: преда́внички (predávnički), изда́јнички (izdájnički)
Portuguese: traidor (pt)
Spanish: traidor (es)

Old French

Alternative forms

traïtor

Etymology

Adaptation of Latin trāditor, trāditorem.

Noun

traitor oblique singular, m (oblique plural traitors, nominative singular traitre, nominative plural traitor)

traitor
- c. 1180, Chrétien de Troyes, Lancelot ou le Chevalier de la charrette:
  Ne croire pas ce traïtor.
  Do not believe this traitor.

Related terms

traïson

Descendants

French: traître
Norman: traître (Jersey)
Walloon: traite
→ Middle English: traytour, traitour, traitor
- English: traitor
- → Middle Irish: trétúir
  - Irish: tréatúir

Old Occitan

Etymology

From Latin trāditor, trāditorem.

Noun

traitor m (oblique plural traitors, nominative singular traitors, nominative plural traitor)

traitor

References

Walther von Wartburg (1928–2002) “traditor”, in Französisches Etymologisches Wörterbuch, volumes 13: To–Tyrus, pages 152–153