Don Quixote
noun
Don Qui·xote
ˌdän-kē-ˈ(h)ō-tē 
ˌdäŋ-;
chiefly British dän-ˈkwik-sət
: an impractical idealist
Examples of Don Quixote in a Sentence
a latter-day Don Quixote, she's spent her life fighting the state's big logging companies
Recent Examples on the Web
In fact, some of the greatest novels are about how reading ruins lives—starting with the book often considered the first modern novel, Don Quixote.
—
Adam Kirsch, The Atlantic, 2 Jan. 2026
The bickering survivors of the Canterbury, led by reluctant captain Jim Holden (Steven Strait), become an unlikely band of freedom fighters/kingmakers after commandeering a Martian warship and rebranding it as the Rocinante (named after Don Quixote's horse).
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 14 Dec. 2025
Now, as Don Quixote, Losada is donning the armor that Jerry Gulledge, the actor who played the role in the Actors’ Playhouse production 30 years ago, wore.
—Michelle F. Solomon, Miami Herald, 17 Nov. 2025
Combining the optimism of Don Quixote and Candide became the guide for my main character—an absolutely surreal, absurd optimist, who believes that even things way out of his league are possible for him.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2025
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Adam Kirsch, The Atlantic, 2 Jan. 2026
The bickering survivors of the Canterbury, led by reluctant captain Jim Holden (Steven Strait), become an unlikely band of freedom fighters/kingmakers after commandeering a Martian warship and rebranding it as the Rocinante (named after Don Quixote's horse).
—Richard Edwards, Space.com, 14 Dec. 2025
Now, as Don Quixote, Losada is donning the armor that Jerry Gulledge, the actor who played the role in the Actors’ Playhouse production 30 years ago, wore.
—Michelle F. Solomon, Miami Herald, 17 Nov. 2025
Combining the optimism of Don Quixote and Candide became the guide for my main character—an absolutely surreal, absurd optimist, who believes that even things way out of his league are possible for him.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 5 Nov. 2025
See All Example Sentences for Don Quixote
Cite this Entry
“Don Quixote.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Don%20Quixote. Accessed 3 Jan. 2026.
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