terrorist

1 of 2

noun

ter·​ror·​ist ˈter-ər-ist 

plural terrorists

: an advocate or practitioner of terrorism as a means of coercion

Opposition still runs high to the idea of releasing or bringing into U.S. prisons dozens of men widely considered dangerous terrorists even if many are not.

Less than three weeks before the Winter Olympics are set to begin in the Russian city of Sochi, police there have begun hunting for suspected terrorists allegedly plotting attacks.

—Time

terrorist

2 of 2

adjective

: or, relating to, or characteristic of terrorists or terrorism : practicing or involving violent acts of terror

a terrorist organization

The consequences of the U.S. response to the terrorist attacks of September 2001 will ramify for decades.

—Joe Klein

There is no margin for error when a real terrorist threat is present and the safety of the public, and the first responders, is in jeopardy.

—Gary J. Laughlin

Examples of terrorist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Because the area is only reachable by horseback and largely barren of security forces, the terrorists’ task was easier. —Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 24 Apr. 2025

Major incidents in the past few years include: July 2017—Amarnath Yatra Attack: Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists ambushed a bus of Hindu pilgrims returning from the Amarnath cave shrine in Anantnag, killing 7 pilgrims (mostly women) and injuring 19. —Ross Rosenfeld, MSNBC Newsweek, 23 Apr. 2025

Adjective

Trump signed Executive Orders to remove individuals suspected of ties to foreign terrorist organizations. —Eric Cortellessa, Time, 25 Apr. 2025

In these, the enemy is not a standing army but various terrorist organizations and looser categories of hostiles, enmeshed in large civilian populations. —Colin Jones, New Yorker, 25 Apr. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1794, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1795, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing terrorist

• anti-terrorist