English → Latin
“refugee” in Latin
profugusthat which flees, has fled, fugitive; unsettled, roving, vagabond, wandering; banished, exiledcōnfugiōto flee; to take refuge; to have recourse toperfugiōto flee or desert; to take refuge
The English word refugee itself goes back to Latin fugiō, through refugium.
Riddle & Arnold A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon, 1864
refugee
profugus (the unfortunate person obliged to forsake his home, etc.; mostly considered as a citizen, Döderlein. ☞ not refugus (Tac.), which = one who is flying, fugitive). By the verbs, confugere, perfugere.
Quick answer
- What is the Latin word for refugee?
- The usual Latin words for “refugee” are profugus, cōnfugiō, perfugiō. The right choice depends on the sense; see the distinctions below.
Entry from J. E. Riddle & T. K. Arnold, A Copious and Critical English–Latin Lexicon (rev. C. Anthon, New York: Harper, 1864), digitised by Fergus J. P. Walsh, CC BY-SA 4.0; Latin markup adapted by latindictionary.co.