(1):
(n.) One who is obstinate in refusal; one standing out stubbornly against general practice or opinion.
(2):
(n.) One who refuses communion with the Church of England; a nonconformist.
(3):
(a.) Obstinate in refusal; specifically, in English history, refusing to acknowledge the supremacy of the king in the churc, or to conform to the established rites of the church; as, a recusant lord.
(4):
(n.) A person who refuses to acknowledge the supremacy of the king in matters of religion; as, a Roman Catholic recusant, who acknowledges the supremacy of the pope.