The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Truant \Tru"ant\, n. [F. truand, OF. truant, a vagrant, beggar;
   of Celtic origin; cf. W. tru, truan, wretched, miserable,
   truan a wretch, Ir. trogha miserable, Gael. truaghan a poor,
   distressed, or wretched creature, truagh wretched.]
   One who stays away from business or any duty; especially, one
   who stays out of school without leave; an idler; a loiterer;
   a shirk. --Dryden.
   [1913 Webster]

         I have a truant been to chivalry.        --Shak.
   [1913 Webster]

   To play truant, to stray away; to loiter; especially, to
      stay out of school without leave. --Sir T. Browne
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Truant \Tru"ant\, a.
   Wandering from business or duty; loitering; idle, and
   shirking duty; as, a truant boy.
   [1913 Webster]

         While truant Jove, in infant pride,
         Played barefoot on Olympus' side.        --Trumbull.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Truant \Tru"ant\, v. i. [Cf. F. truander.]
   To idle away time; to loiter, or wander; to play the truant.
   --Shak.
   [1913 Webster]

         By this means they lost their time and truanted on the
         fundamental grounds of saving knowledge. --Lowell.
   [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Truant \Tru"ant\, v. t.
   To idle away; to waste. [R.]
   [1913 Webster]

         I dare not be the author
         Of truanting the time.                   --Ford.
   [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

truant
    adj 1: absent without permission; "truant schoolboys"; "the
           soldier was AWOL for almost a week" [syn: truant,
           awol]
    n 1: one who is absent from school without permission [syn:
         truant, hooky player]
    2: someone who shirks duty [syn: no-show, nonattender,
       truant]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

66 Moby Thesaurus words for "truant":
   AWOL, Bowery bum, absent, absent without leave, absentee,
   beachcomber, beggar, beggarly fellow, blighter, budmash, bum,
   bummer, caitiff, clock watcher, delinquent, derelict, devil,
   dodger, drifter, drunkard, eye-servant, goldbrick, goldbricker,
   good-for-naught, good-for-nothing, hobo, human wreck, idler,
   loafer, loafing, lowlife, malingerer, malingering, mauvais sujet,
   mean wretch, mucker, no-good, old soldier, pauvre diable,
   pilgarlic, poor creature, poor devil, runaway, sad case, sad sack,
   shirk, shirker, shirking, skid-row bum, skulk, skulker, slacker,
   soldier, stiff, sundowner, swagman, tax dodger, tramp, vag,
   vagabond, vagrant, vaurien, wastrel, welsher, worthless fellow,
   wretch