as in social
tending to group with others of the same kind
colonial organisms
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in settler
a person who settles in a new region
European colonials who built coffee plantations in East Africa
Synonyms & Similar Words
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 colonial
Literary Hub, 16 June 2026
The 7,500-square-foot space includes a 65-seat dining room and a cocktail lounge called Regiment One55, inspired by British colonial-era social clubs.
—Charlotte Observer, 15 June 2026
Dan Greene, New Yorker, 12 June 2026
The first to feature baseball appeared in 1934 and was issued in the Philippines, where the sport had been introduced under American colonial rule.
—Tom Reinsfelder, The Conversation, 9 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for colonial
Adjective
His dark chocolate skin was something that colonial recruitment offices had rejected in volunteers just one year before.
—Literary Hub, 16 June 2026
The 7,500-square-foot space includes a 65-seat dining room and a cocktail lounge called Regiment One55, inspired by British colonial-era social clubs.
—Charlotte Observer, 15 June 2026
Noun
Like many nations, Morocco’s devotion to soccer is a vestige of its colonial past.
—Dan Greene, New Yorker, 12 June 2026
The first to feature baseball appeared in 1934 and was issued in the Philippines, where the sport had been introduced under American colonial rule.
—Tom Reinsfelder, The Conversation, 9 June 2026
See All Example Sentences for colonial
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonial
Adjective
-
The researchers also suggest cash stipends or other social protection policies for lower-income families, and livable minimum wage guarantees.—
Kamala Thiagarajan,
NPR,
21 June 2026
-
Getty Images for Ascot Racecourse The highly agile Getty shooter Alan Crowhurst has done us a great favor by bringing concrete cloakroom evidence of the many social and administrative challenges that the (famous) Royal Ascot costume edicts require in order to be properly met.—
Guy Martin,
Forbes.com,
21 June 2026
Noun
-
Goldman has consistently criticized Israel's government and condemned settler violence but has stopped short of describing the conflict as a genocide, which Lander has done.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
23 June 2026
-
Goldman has consistently criticized Israel’s government and condemned settler violence but has stopped short of describing the conflict as a genocide, which Lander has done.—
Anthony Izaguirre,
Fortune,
23 June 2026
Noun
-
William Arruda is a keynote speaker, personal branding pioneer, and Senior Contributor to Forbes.—
William Arruda,
Forbes.com,
21 June 2026
-
The whole opening of the film pays homage to those pioneers of cinema.—
Elsa Keslassy,
Variety,
20 June 2026
Noun
-
The sultan learned about the American colonists’ war for independence indirectly, through the local French consul and European reports.—
Scott Spires Britannica Editors June 23,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
23 June 2026
-
Those groups, and more recent successors, drew on strains of conspiracy theory-minded thinking that go back to the American Revolution, when many colonists believed that a corrupt British elite was plotting to strip them of their traditional liberties.—
Vivian Yee,
New York Times,
20 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Colonial.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonial. Accessed 25 Jun. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
