Definition

1. Noun:

   • A person who returns from the dead; a ghost or spirit: A "revenant" is specifically a being that has come back to life or returned to haunt the living.
   • A person who returns after a long absence: This meaning refers to a living person who comes back to a place or community after being away for a significant period.

2. Adjective:

   • Returning, especially from the dead or a long absence: Describes something or someone that comes back.
   • Of, relating to, or characteristic of a revenant: Describes qualities typical of such a returning spirit or person.

Examples of Usage

• Noun:

  • The villagers feared the old castle, believing it was haunted by a vengeful revenant.
  • After twenty years abroad, he was a revenant in his hometown, unrecognizable to his old neighbors.

• Adjective:

  • The story featured a revenant spirit seeking justice.
  • She was startled by a revenant shriek echoing through the empty halls.

Advanced Usage

• The term is often used in Gothic and horror literature to denote a specific type of ghost, one that has a physical or tangible presence, unlike an insubstantial specter.
• It can be used metaphorically to describe ideas, styles, or trends that make a comeback:

Variants and Related Words

• Revenance (n., rare): The state or condition of being a revenant; the act of returning.
• Revenant is related to the French verb , meaning "to come back."

Synonyms

• Noun (ghost): ghost, specter, phantom, apparition, wraith.
• Noun (returner): returnee.
• Adjective: returning, recurring.

Related Phrases and Idioms

• While there are no common phrasal verbs with "revenant," the concept is central to idioms like "back from the dead," which can be used literally or figuratively.

Adjective

1. coming back
   • a revenant ghost
2. of or relating to or typical of a revenant
   • revenant shrieks and groans

Noun

1. someone who has returned from the dead
2. a person who returns after a lengthy absence