migrant

noun

mi·​grant ˈmī-grənt 

plural migrants

: someone or something that migrates: such as

a

: a person who moves regularly in order to find work especially in harvesting crops

farms employing migrants during the growing season

b

: immigrant sense a

especially : refugee

… administration officials announced they would work to swiftly screen migrants seeking asylum at the border … and penalize people who cross illegally into the U.S. or illegally through another country on their way to the U.S. border.

—Colleen Long

c

: an animal (such as a gray whale, monarch butterfly, leatherback sea turtle, or Canada goose) that moves usually long distances from one habitat or geographic region to another

migrant adjective

migrant labor

migrant birds

Synonyms of migrant

• immigrant
• refugee
• settler
• emigrant

Examples of migrant in a Sentence

migrants in search of work on farms

Not all birds are migrants.

Recent Examples on the Web

Under normal circumstances, several thousand migrants cross without documents to the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla each year. — Kelsey Norman, Fortune, 10 Aug. 2026

There are now more than 50 Korean restaurants in Patronato, a small neighborhood that hosted the first wave of Korean migrants to Santiago throughout the 20th century. — John Bartlett, NPR, 8 Aug. 2026

The groups have claimed migrants without documents are contributing to South Africa's high unemployment rate by taking jobs, while also putting pressure on public services. — ABC News, 8 Aug. 2026

Kuda kepang was introduced to the southern Malaysian state of Johor by Javanese migrants who had settled in the peninsula as plantation workers and farmers in the 1910s through the 1930s. — H.m.a. Leow, JSTOR Daily, 7 Aug. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Latin migrant-, migrans, present participle of migrare

First Known Use

1760, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing migrant

• in-migrant
• out-migrant

Kids Definition

migrant

noun

mi·​grant ˈmī-grənt 

: a person, animal, or plant that migrates

migrant adjective