rogue

Rogue is a term used in English to describe a person or thing that departs from conventional behavior or expected pattern. As a noun, a rogue is typically an unscrupulous, unpredictable, or dishonest individual, such as a rogue trader or a rogue elephant. As an adjective, rogue describes actions or objects that operate outside standard norms, often with an element of risk or mischief.

Usage spans several domains. In geopolitics, a rogue state refers to a government perceived as threatening or destabilizing, often pursuing weapons programs outside international norms. In natural science, rogue waves are unusually large, sudden waves that emerge from complex ocean dynamics. In astronomy, rogue or free-floating planets travel through interstellar space without orbiting a star.

In culture, Rogue is the name of a famous character in Marvel Comics, Anna Marie, who absorbs others' memories and powers. In video games, Rogue (1980) is a landmark dungeon-crawl game that inspired the roguelike genre, characterized by procedural generation and permadeath. The term roguelike describes similar titles that imitate these features.

In games and fiction, a rogue is also a common class or archetype, typically a stealthy character skilled in sneak, lock-picking, and trap disarming, relying on agility rather than brute force. The word has broad usage in everyday language as a label for independent, unreliable, or renegade actors.