Definition of recusant

• a. - Obstinate in refusal; specifically, in English history, refusing to acknowledge the supremacy of the king in the churc, or to conform to the established rites of the church; as, a recusant lord.
• n. - One who is obstinate in refusal; one standing out stubbornly against general practice or opinion.
• n. - A person who refuses to acknowledge the supremacy of the king in matters of religion; as, a Roman Catholic recusant, who acknowledges the supremacy of the pope.
• n. - One who refuses communion with the Church of England; a nonconformist.