: a temporary stay
a sojourn in the country
sojourned; sojourning; sojourns
: to stay as a temporary resident : stop
sojourned for a month at a resort
sojourner
noun
Synonyms
Examples of sojourn in a Sentence
Noun
The visit with my father was preceded by a sojourn with my sister, Joy—an artistic type and sometime vegan who plays the part of patient vegetarian whenever her unrepentantly carnivorous brother drops in—and her husband, who were kind enough to pick me up at Heathrow.
—
John Haney, Gourmet, January 2003
On a recent sojourn in Sicily, I frequently found myself remembering that page in the children's encyclopedia, because it seemed to me that what I was seeing was as close as I will ever come to the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
—Francine Prose, Atlantic, December 2002
My mother is Venezuelan, and every year during my childhood we spent a two-month sojourn with her family there.
—Alexandra Starr, New Republic, 20 May 2002
Our family enjoyed a two-week sojourn in the mountains.
spent a relaxing sojourn in her friend's summer home
Verb
'Am I hideous, Jane?' 'Very, sir: you always were, you know.' 'Humph! The wickedness has not been taken out of you, wherever you have sojourned.'
—Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre, 1847
… there abode, in a remote period of American history, that is to say, some thirty years since, a worthy wight of the name of Ichabod Crane, who sojourned, or, as he expressed it, "tarried," in Sleepy Hollow, for the purpose of instructing the children of the vicinity.
—Washington Irving, The Legend of Sleep Hollow, 1820
began their retirement by leisurely sojourning with friends and relatives scattered across the country
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John Haney, Gourmet, January 2003
On a recent sojourn in Sicily, I frequently found myself remembering that page in the children's encyclopedia, because it seemed to me that what I was seeing was as close as I will ever come to the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
—Francine Prose, Atlantic, December 2002
My mother is Venezuelan, and every year during my childhood we spent a two-month sojourn with her family there.
—Alexandra Starr, New Republic, 20 May 2002
Our family enjoyed a two-week sojourn in the mountains.
spent a relaxing sojourn in her friend's summer home
Verb
'Am I hideous, Jane?' 'Very, sir: you always were, you know.' 'Humph! The wickedness has not been taken out of you, wherever you have sojourned.'
—Charlotte Brontë, Jane Eyre, 1847
… there abode, in a remote period of American history, that is to say, some thirty years since, a worthy wight of the name of Ichabod Crane, who sojourned, or, as he expressed it, "tarried," in Sleepy Hollow, for the purpose of instructing the children of the vicinity.
—Washington Irving, The Legend of Sleep Hollow, 1820
began their retirement by leisurely sojourning with friends and relatives scattered across the country
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Recent Examples on the WebNina MacLaughlin, BostonGlobe.com, 14 Sep. 2023
Her hectic on-land travails include waging war on their rental car (which proves very difficult to access without keys), and a sojourn to a nearby local church where, alas, help is not found.
—Dennis Harvey, Variety, 23 Aug. 2023
Full flights in are expected, while seats on the trains that usually transport trekkers and pilgrims to a city that dates back to the days of the Silk Road are now at a premium for cinema fans making their annual sojourn from Beijing, and beyond.
—Mathew Scott, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 July 2023
Part high-stakes competition, part family drama, the action takes place in France and Japan, with a brief sojourn to Italy.
—Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 20 Apr. 2023
There have been supernatural dimensions in Miyazaki’s work before — Mahito’s sojourn often brings to mind Chihiro’s in Spirited Away.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 8 Sep. 2023
Colorado’s board of defectors voted unanimously on Thursday afternoon for the Buffaloes to Mile Hightail their way back to the familiar confines of their original conference after holding down the bottom of this one for most of its 12-year sojourn.
—Bill Oram, oregonlive, 27 July 2023
In her early twenties, back in England after her Paris sojourn, Rose embarked on a dissertation on children’s literature at University College London, and fell in with feminist groups.
—Parul Sehgal, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
This particular shade of blue really pops and is just the sort of thing to wear for an August sojourn in the south of France.
—Carol Besler, Robb Report, 1 Aug. 2023
Hayley Smith, Los Angeles Times, 17 July 2023
The new study, published this week in Nature Communications, bolsters evidence that modern humans sojourned out of Africa more than once and traveled vast distances—although these precocious migrants likely didn’t contribute many, if any, genes to modern populations.
—Byscience News Staff, science.org, 15 June 2023
Regardless, Bolsonaro—who has still refused to concede the election—now may be skipping his successor’s inauguration and ditching his wife to sojourn in Florida for up to two months.
—Prem Thakker, The New Republic, 28 Dec. 2022
The Red Wings sojourn through the Great White North, this time facing the Oilers.
—Andrew Hammond, Detroit Free Press, 16 Mar. 2022
Organizer Bob Hannaford said the swingers sojourn in New Orleans was initially scheduled for the summer but was postponed because of the pandemic.
—Matt Sledge, NOLA.com, 13 Nov. 2020
The safest way to sojourn into the haunted, creepy and macabre, especially during a pandemic, is never to leave home.
—Kirby Adams, The Courier-Journal, 27 Oct. 2020
For two weeks in August each year, the family would sojourn to the Atlantic Coast for a vacation, first at Ocean City and later at Bethany Beach and elsewhere.
—Jacob Wallace, Washington Post, 22 May 2020
To the city folk who sojourn there, West Marin is an agrarian idyll.
—Leilani Marie Labong, SFChronicle.com, 21 May 2020
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Noun
Now in its third year, Poetry Train is honoring Sylvia Plath, which means the festival will begin its 19-state and 64-city-and-town sojourn from Boston.
—Nina MacLaughlin, BostonGlobe.com, 14 Sep. 2023
Her hectic on-land travails include waging war on their rental car (which proves very difficult to access without keys), and a sojourn to a nearby local church where, alas, help is not found.
—Dennis Harvey, Variety, 23 Aug. 2023
Full flights in are expected, while seats on the trains that usually transport trekkers and pilgrims to a city that dates back to the days of the Silk Road are now at a premium for cinema fans making their annual sojourn from Beijing, and beyond.
—Mathew Scott, The Hollywood Reporter, 22 July 2023
Part high-stakes competition, part family drama, the action takes place in France and Japan, with a brief sojourn to Italy.
—Nina Metz, Chicago Tribune, 20 Apr. 2023
There have been supernatural dimensions in Miyazaki’s work before — Mahito’s sojourn often brings to mind Chihiro’s in Spirited Away.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 8 Sep. 2023
Colorado’s board of defectors voted unanimously on Thursday afternoon for the Buffaloes to Mile Hightail their way back to the familiar confines of their original conference after holding down the bottom of this one for most of its 12-year sojourn.
—Bill Oram, oregonlive, 27 July 2023
In her early twenties, back in England after her Paris sojourn, Rose embarked on a dissertation on children’s literature at University College London, and fell in with feminist groups.
—Parul Sehgal, The New Yorker, 14 Aug. 2023
This particular shade of blue really pops and is just the sort of thing to wear for an August sojourn in the south of France.
—Carol Besler, Robb Report, 1 Aug. 2023
Verb
The group had sojourned to Badwater Basin, the park’s lowest point and the lowest point in North America, which sits 282 feet below sea level.
—Hayley Smith, Los Angeles Times, 17 July 2023
The new study, published this week in Nature Communications, bolsters evidence that modern humans sojourned out of Africa more than once and traveled vast distances—although these precocious migrants likely didn’t contribute many, if any, genes to modern populations.
—Byscience News Staff, science.org, 15 June 2023
Regardless, Bolsonaro—who has still refused to concede the election—now may be skipping his successor’s inauguration and ditching his wife to sojourn in Florida for up to two months.
—Prem Thakker, The New Republic, 28 Dec. 2022
The Red Wings sojourn through the Great White North, this time facing the Oilers.
—Andrew Hammond, Detroit Free Press, 16 Mar. 2022
Organizer Bob Hannaford said the swingers sojourn in New Orleans was initially scheduled for the summer but was postponed because of the pandemic.
—Matt Sledge, NOLA.com, 13 Nov. 2020
The safest way to sojourn into the haunted, creepy and macabre, especially during a pandemic, is never to leave home.
—Kirby Adams, The Courier-Journal, 27 Oct. 2020
For two weeks in August each year, the family would sojourn to the Atlantic Coast for a vacation, first at Ocean City and later at Bethany Beach and elsewhere.
—Jacob Wallace, Washington Post, 22 May 2020
To the city folk who sojourn there, West Marin is an agrarian idyll.
—Leilani Marie Labong, SFChronicle.com, 21 May 2020
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These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sojourn.' 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
Middle English sojorn, from Anglo-French sujur, sujurn, from sujurner — see sojourn entry 2
Verb
Middle English, from Anglo-French sujurner, sejurner, from Vulgar Latin *subdiurnare, from Latin sub under, during + Late Latin diurnum day — more at up, journey
First Known Use
Noun
13th century, in the meaning defined above
Verb
14th century, in the meaning defined above
Time Traveler
The first known use of sojourn was
in the 13th century
Articles Related to sojourn
Dictionary Entries Near sojourn
Cite this Entry
“Sojourn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sojourn. Accessed 27 Sep. 2023.
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More from Merriam-Webster on sojourn
Nglish: Translation of sojourn for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of sojourn for Arabic Speakers
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