missionary

1 of 2

noun

mis·​sion·​ary ˈmi-shə-ˌner-ē 

plural missionaries

: a person undertaking a mission and especially a religious mission

Several years ago, when I was working as a reporter based in Haiti, I came upon a group of older Christian missionaries in the mountains above Port-au-Prince … They were there to build a school alongside a Methodist church.

—Jacob Kushner

Hawaiian Pidgin English developed during the 1800s and early 1900s, when immigrant laborers from China, Portugal, and the Philippines arrived to work in the plantations; American missionaries also came around that time.

—Alia Wong

missionary

2 of 2

adjective

1

: relating to, engaged in, or devoted to missions

2

: characteristic of a missionary

… I continue … revealing with missionary zeal the wonders of quilted art.

—Joan V. Parker

Did you know?

Beginning around 1540, an order of Catholic priests known as the Jesuits began to send its members to many parts of the world to convert peoples who believed in other gods to Christianity. Wherever they went, the Catholic missionaries built central buildings for their religious work, and the buildings themselves became known as missions; many 17th-century missions in the American West and Southwest are now preserved as museums. Their foes, the Protestants, soon began sending out their own missionaries, and today Protestant missionaries are probably far more numerous.

Examples of missionary in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

The megahit comedy musical about religious missionaries in Uganda has been on Broadway since 2011 (minus a COVID-19 break) and is currently the 10th longest-running Broadway show of all time. —Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 8 Apr. 2026

These young female missionaries, dressed in white, have been sent into Canada to draw girls to Gilead’s cause. —Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2026

Adjective

Elders promised that roughly $15 million of the church’s $100 million annual revenue would be allocated to international missionary work, according to the lawsuit. —Lillie Davidson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 2 Apr. 2026

American Presbyterian missionary efforts in Iran began in 1834 and focused on education, with 117 schools established around Urmia by 1895. —Daniel Thomas Potts, The Conversation, 30 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1623, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1644, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing missionary

• missionary position
• missionary zeal

Rhymes for missionary

• accessary
• adversary
• ancillary
• arbitrary
• aviary
• axillary
• beriberi
• breviary
• budgetary
• capillary
• catenary
• cautionary

Kids Definition

missionary

1 of 2 adjective

mis·​sion·​ary ˈmish-ə-ˌner-ē 

1

: relating to, engaged in, or devoted to missions

2

: characteristic of a missionary : zealous

missionary

2 of 2 noun

plural missionaries

: one sent to spread a religious faith among unbelievers or to engage in charitable work with religious support