Word Study
turncoat
CIDE DICTIONARY
turncoat, n.
One who forsakes his party or his principles; a renegade; an apostate; a defector to the enemy. [1913 Webster]
"He is a turncoat, he was not true to his profession." [1913 Webster]
THESAURUS
turncoat
Benedict Arnold, Brutus, Judas, Judas Iscariot, Judas-like, Quisling, Trojan-horse, Vicar of Bray, apostate, archtraitor, backslider, betrayer, betraying, bolter, cockatrice, collaborationist, collaborator, conniver, conspirator, conspirer, convert, defector, deserter, double agent, double-crosser, double-crossing, double-dealer, fifth columnist, fifth-column, informer, intrigant, intriguer, machinator, mugwump, plotter, proselyte, quisling, quislingistic, rat, recidivist, recreant, renegade, renegado, renegate, reversionist, runagate, schemer, schismatic, seceder, secessionist, separatist, serpent, snake, spy, straggler, strikebreaker, tergiversant, tergiversator, timeserver, traitor, traitorous, treasonable, treasonist, treasonous, trimmer, turnabout, turntail, two-timingFor further exploring for "turncoat" in Webster Dictionary Online