The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Recreant \Rec"re*ant\ (-ant), a. [OF., cowardly, fr. recroire,
   recreire, to forsake, leave, tire, discourage, regard as
   conquered, LL. recredere se to declare one's self conquered
   in combat; hence, those are called recrediti or recreanti who
   are considered infamous; L. pref. re- again, back + credere
   to believe, to be of opinion; hence, originally, to disavow
   one's opinion. See Creed.]
   1. Crying for mercy, as a combatant in the trial by battle;
      yielding; cowardly; mean-spirited; craven. "This recreant
      knight." --Spenser.
      [1913 Webster]

   2. Apostate; false; unfaithful.
      [1913 Webster]

            Who, for so many benefits received,
            Turned recreant to God, ingrate and false. --Milton.
      [1913 Webster]

The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:

Recreant \Rec"re*ant\, n.
   One who yields in combat, and begs for mercy; a
   mean-spirited, cowardly wretch. --Blackstone.
   [1913 Webster]

         You are all recreants and dastards!      --Shak.
   [1913 Webster]

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):

recreant
    adj 1: having deserted a cause or principle; "some provinces had
           proved recreant"; "renegade supporters of the usurper"
           [syn: recreant, renegade]
    2: lacking even the rudiments of courage; abjectly fearful; "the
       craven fellow turned and ran"; "a craven proposal to raise
       the white flag"; "this recreant knight"- Spenser [syn:
       craven, recreant]
    n 1: an abject coward [syn: poltroon, craven, recreant]
    2: a disloyal person who betrays or deserts his cause or
       religion or political party or friend etc. [syn: deserter,
       apostate, renegade, turncoat, recreant, ratter]

Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0:

110 Moby Thesaurus words for "recreant":
   Sabbath-breaker, apostate, arrant coward, atheist, atheistic,
   backslider, backsliding, bad egg, bad lot, base, black sheep,
   blackguardly, blasphemer, blasphemous, bolter, caitiff,
   collaborationist, collaborative, collaborator, convert, craven,
   dastard, dastardly, defector, degenerate, degraded, derelict,
   deserter, disaffected, disloyal, dunghill, dunghilly, faithless,
   fallen, fallen angel, fallen from grace, false, fickle,
   fifth columnist, impious, inconstant, infamous, irreligious,
   irreverent, knavish, lapsed, lecher, lost sheep, lost soul,
   miscreant, mugwump, not true to, notorious, of bad faith,
   perfidious, pervert, pimp, poltroon, poltroonish, profanatory,
   profane, profligate, proselyte, pusillanimous, quisling, rascally,
   rat, recidivist, recidivistic, renegade, renegado, renegate,
   reprobate, reversionist, roguish, runagate, sacrilegious,
   sacrilegist, scampish, scapegrace, schismatic, scoundrelly,
   seceder, secessionist, separatist, sneak, sorry lot, strikebreaker,
   tergiversant, tergiversating, tergiversator, traitor, traitorous,
   treacherous, treasonable, treasonous, trollop, trothless,
   turnabout, turncoat, turntail, unbeliever, undutiful, unfaithful,
   unloyal, unsteadfast, untrue, vile, villainous, whore



Bouvier's Law Dictionary, Revised 6th Ed (1856):

RECREANT. A Coward; a poltroon. 3 Bl. Com. 340.