maverick
English · Thesaurus
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maverick¹
- /ˈmævəɹɪk/ UK
- /ˈmævəɹɪk/ US
Where it comes from
Named after Texan lawyer and politician Samuel Maverick (1803–1870), who refused to brand his cattle. For probable origin and meaning, see Maverick.
The poker noun sense (“a queen and a jack as a starting hand in Texas hold ’em”) may be from the theme song of the US Western television series Maverick (1957–1962), which says of the eponymous protagonist that “[g]amblin’ is his game” and that he is “livin’ on jacks and queens”.
adjective more maverick · most maverick
- Unbranded. Occasionally some young men who have no cattle of their own will take part in these expeditions, or they will give their services by the year to receive a pro rata of all the maverick cattle that may be found. [Quoted from The Texas New Yorker, pages 110–111.]
- Showing independence in thoughts or actions. He made a maverick decision. She is such a maverick person.
noun mavericks
- An unbranded range animal. In this distribution, care is taken to leave not only those which bear the owner's mark and brand, but his due proportion of the mavericks* that have been found upon the expedition. [footnote: *The term "maverick" is applied in this country to all animals that have neither mark nor brand upon them,
- Anything dishonestly obtained.
-
One who is unconventional or does not abide by rules.
Among historians he was a maverick because of his belief that history is meaningless.
Similar: heteroclite, individualist, lone gunman, nonconformist, rebel
- One who creates or uses controversial or unconventional ideas or practices. We then drift back into our old habits, glorify efficiency, and smile knowingly at the mavericks within the faculty who want the administration to take democracy seriously.
- A person in the military who became an officer by going to college while on active duty as an enlisted person. They had been working for and with each other for a very long period and their tolerance for “mavericks” was very high, especially if these mavericks continued to get promoted.
- A queen and a jack as a starting hand in Texas hold ’em.
Similar: eccentric, free spirit, heteroclite, deviant, deviate, individualist, maverick, misfit, nonconformist, offbeat · Opposite: dogmatist, formalist, pedant, stickler, traditionalist
verb mavericks · mavericking · mavericked
- To take an unbranded range animal. The court permitted the State to prove, over defendant's objections, that Thedford met Noon Tucker and Calvery driving the yearling over to Bachelor's for delivery. Thedford inquired of Noon “if that [meaning the yearling] was one he had mavericked?”
- To seize without a legal claim.
Maverick²
Where it comes from
The surname is most famously associated with Samuel Maverick, a rancher from Texas who did not brand his cattle. The surname is of uncertain origin, but known to date as far back as the 1500s in Devon, England. Its meaning is a matter of conjecture, with connections to the name Maurice being unprovable.
proper noun
- A surname.
- A male given name.
- Any of several individual secondary school and sports team mascots, most of which are in the United States.
noun Mavericks
- A member of one of the sports teams with a mascot called Maverick.
- Someone who attends, or has attended in the past, one of these schools, especially one involved in the sports teams.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: rebel, unorthodox, unconventional, irregular, gentlemen, splinter, shooter, rifleman, sniper, breakaway, renegade, original, dissident, dissenting, outsider, runaway
noun
Similar: eccentric, free spirit, heteroclite, deviant, deviate, individualist, maverick, misfit, nonconformist, offbeat · Opposite: dogmatist, formalist, pedant, stickler, traditionalist
Translations
Every language
adj showing independence in thoughts or actions
| Español | rebelde, disidente, independiente |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 特立獨行 /特立独行 tèlìdúxíng |
| हिन्दी | गैर पारंपरिक gair pāramparik |
| Português | independente, rebelde |
| Français | individualiste |
| Deutsch | individualistisch, eigenwillig |
| Italiano | individualista |
| Română | individualist |
| Русский | инакомы́слящий inakomýsljaščij, свободомы́слящий svobodomýsljaščij |
noun unbranded range animal
| Español | cimarrón |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | mutterloses Kalb, Tier ohne Brandzeichen |
| Italiano | brado |
| Русский | неклеймённый телёнок neklejmjónnyj teljónok |
noun one who is unconventional or does not abide by rules
| Español | disidente, rebelde, independiente |
|---|---|
| Português | inconformista, excêntrico, excêntrica, dissidente |
| Français | anticonformiste, excentrique, franc-tireur, non-conformiste |
| Deutsch | Querkopf, Individualist, Nonkonformist, Paradiesvogel |
| Italiano | cane sciolto, anticonformista, indipendente, battitore libero |
| Русский | индивидуали́ст individualíst, индивидуали́стка individualístka, нонконформи́ст nonkonformíst, нонконформи́стка nonkonformístka |
noun one who creates or uses controversial or unconventional ideas or practices
| Español | excéntrico |
|---|---|
| Français | dissident, franc-tireur |
| Deutsch | eigenwilliger Typ, Nonkonformist, Paradiesvogel, Querkopf |
| Italiano | anticonformista |
| Русский | диссиде́нт dissidént, диссиде́нтка dissidéntka, вольноду́мец volʹnodúmec, инакомы́слящий inakomýsljaščij |
Talk about this word "maverick." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/maverick. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. maverick. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/maverick "maverick." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/maverick.Cite this
@misc{maverick_2026,
title = {maverick},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/maverick},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
