William Faulkner wil·liam·faulk·ner uncommon noun 1. United States novelist (originally Falkner) who wrote about people in the southern United States (1897-1962) SynonymsFaulknerWilliam FaulknerWilliam Cuthbert FaulknerFalknerWilliam Falkner Related words Broader terms novelist WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved.