crusade

1 of 2

noun

cru·​sade krü-ˈsād How to pronounce crusade (audio)
1
capitalized : any of the military expeditions undertaken by Christian powers in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries to win the Holy Land from the Muslims
2
: a remedial enterprise undertaken with zeal and enthusiasm
a crusade against drunk driving

crusade

2 of 2

verb

crusaded; crusading

intransitive verb

: to engage in a crusade

Did you know?

In 1095, when Palestinian lands were held by Muslims, Pope Urban II exhorted Christians to reclaim the Holy Sepulchre and other venerated sites. Those who responded wore crosses of cloth on their breasts to identify themselves as soldiers in Christ’s army. Medieval French words for such holy wars were croisement, croiserie, croisée, and croisade, all derivatives of crois, meaning “cross.” In the 18th century, long after the crusades themselves had ceased, English borrowed both French croisade and the Spanish cruzado (likewise formed from a word meaning “cross”), blending the two to produce crusade.

Examples of crusade in a Sentence

Noun a grassroots crusade for spending more money on our public schools
Recent Examples on the Web
Noun
While that venue has closed, her crusade includes advocating to put such programs elsewhere out of business today. Brian Lowry, CNN, 5 Mar. 2024 In my opinion, this suit is a far worthier crusade than Springer and its peers’ largely successful quest to wring fees out of Google and Facebook for what amounts to carrying links to articles. David Meyer, Fortune, 29 Feb. 2024 Lifeway has had to embark on a veritable educational crusade, building product awareness and generating demand where none existed before. Alexander Puutio, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024 Stallone will play a hard-nosed police detective about to retire, but who must team up with a younger cop and former priest to stop a serial killer on a murderous crusade through the wintery streets of Philadelphia. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 Feb. 2024 The same character flaw has been on display in Ackman’s latest crusade, which began as an ultimately successful effort to oust Claudine Gay as the president of Harvard. Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2024 This announcement marks not just a strategic business move, but a deeply personal crusade for Tyson. Javier Hasse, Forbes, 14 Feb. 2024 This effort is in direct response to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ statewide crusade to restrict how race and other subjects are taught in public schools and colleges. Char Adams, NBC News, 8 Feb. 2024 Rabbi Matisyahu Salomon, a longtime spiritual counselor at America’s largest yeshiva who spearheaded a crusade to warn observant Jews of the risks posed by the internet, died on Jan. 2 in Lakewood, N.J. Joseph Berger, New York Times, 7 Feb. 2024
Verb
Russian authorities said that Alexei Navalny, the fiercest foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin who crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests, died in prison. Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 23 Feb. 2024 Navalny, 47, crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests. Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2024 Alexei Navalny, the fiercest foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin who crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests, died in prison Friday Feb. 16, 2024 Russia's prison agency said. Jim Heintz, arkansasonline.com, 17 Feb. 2024 Friedman, who was concerned more with crusading executives than crusading investors, thought shareholders would mostly desire profit. Walter Frick, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2024 The East European director points to Putin foe Alexei Navalny, who crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests, only for his death in prison at age 47 to be announced on Friday. Etan Vlessing, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 Feb. 2024 Murray starred as a Civil War-era bounty hunter on the 1968-69 ABC series The Outcasts and co-wrote and directed The Cross and the Switchblade (1970), a true-life drama about a crusading New York minister (Pat Boone) that also featured Erik Estrada in his screen debut. Mike Barnes, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Feb. 2024 New Fortune landed the West Coast premiere of Scottish playwright David Harrower’s 90-minute modern adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s 1882 play about a crusading Norwegian doctor who loses everything in his fight for the public good against his town’s corrupt leaders. Pam Kragen, San Diego Union-Tribune, 31 Dec. 2023 But today, the conflict with the main church, presided over by the crusading Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, seems to have subsided, with both factions supporting Russia’s sacred mission in Ukraine. Elettra Pauletto, Harper's Magazine, 11 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'crusade.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

blend of Middle French croisade & Spanish cruzada; both ultimately from Latin cruc-, crux cross

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1708, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1732, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of crusade was circa 1708

Dictionary Entries Near crusade

Cite this Entry

“Crusade.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crusade. Accessed 15 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

crusade

1 of 2 noun
cru·​sade krü-ˈsād How to pronounce crusade (audio)
1
capitalized : any of the military expeditions made by Christian countries in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims
2
: a campaign to get things changed for the better
a crusade against crime

crusade

2 of 2 verb
crusaded; crusading
: to take part in a crusade
crusader noun
Etymology

Noun

derived from early French croisade and Spanish cruzada, both meaning literally "an expedition of persons marked with or bearing the sign of the cross" and both derived from Latin cruc-, crux "cross" — related to cross

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