citizens

Definition of citizensnext
plural of citizen
1
as in nationals
a person who owes allegiance to a government and is protected by it conscientious citizens who regard voting as a duty as well as a right

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of citizens As Japanese American children were detained, so have immigrant children been locked up, some for months on end, in detention centers; some children, including US citizens, have been deported. Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 16 Feb. 2026 The weather service encourages law enforcement officers, firefighters, dispatchers, EMS personnel, utility workers, and private citizens — as well as those affiliated with hospitals, schools, churches, and nursing homes — to become spotters. Mary Wasson, Austin American Statesman, 15 Feb. 2026 French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said that the episode shows Vladimir Putin is willing to use chemical agents against his own citizens to maintain power. Freddie Clayton, NBC news, 15 Feb. 2026 Such harm includes allegations of property damage caused by agents breaking into private property, chokeholds and other physical mistreatment, unlawful detentions of citizens for days, and even death (in the case of Renee Good, the American citizen shot by ICE in Minneapolis). Agustina Vergara Cid, Oc Register, 15 Feb. 2026 Documentation requirements for non-citizens vary based on immigration status. Kristen Taketa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 15 Feb. 2026 Yet the government can still gradually erode rights, shaping citizens into compliant instruments of the state if left unchecked. Ken Silverstein, Twin Cities, 15 Feb. 2026 Shaikin wrote that the Dodgers accepting an invitation to a photo op at the White House is acceptance of an administration whose policies led to two American citizens being shot to death on American streets by immigration agents. Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2026 North Dakota is one of 18 states that allow citizens to propose and vote on amendments to the state constitution. Jacob Orledge, ProPublica, 6 Jan. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for citizens
Noun
  • The Alien Enemies Act of 1798 was used to detain foreign nationals, many of them Japanese, while Executive Order 9066 was used to detain and incarcerate people of Japanese descent from the West Coast en masse, including US citizens.
    Zoe Sottile, CNN Money, 16 Feb. 2026
  • The individuals on board claimed to be Mexican nationals, according to a news release.
    Alexandra Mendoza, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The farm has been so long neglected that its barn and homestead are in complete disrepair, its fields untended and its livestock distributed among the villagers, none of whom volunteer to return the animals.
    David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 15 Feb. 2026
  • This was the local method of refrigeration, and the villagers survived on subsistence hunting.
    Ken Harbaugh, The Atlantic, 9 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The program is one of several that Mama’s Kitchen offers for San Diego residents with HIV, cancer, congestive heart failure, type 2 diabetes, chronic kidney disease and other critical illnesses.
    Linda Mcintosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Feb. 2026
  • Above the Bio Barray mansions is a reservoir providing 90% of the water for Freetown residents.
    ED DAVEY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS, Arkansas Online, 19 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • As a result, its inhabitants are going hungry.
    Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 20 Feb. 2026
  • One interesting question is how children born and raised on Mars would view their relationship to Earth and its inhabitants.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Citizens.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/citizens. Accessed 21 Feb. 2026.

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