Definition of colonistnext
as in settler
a person who settles in a new region over time the colonists began to sense that they were becoming a people unto themselves

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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 colonist The early colonists were very much anti-idol worshippers and even modern Catholics, as Vice President Vance surely knows, have long been criticized by their Protestant counterparts for a love of statuary, reliquaries and other iconography that some have argued fall into idolatry. Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 1 Apr. 2026 The aiyi have sent an emissary to Scythia, who will determine whether the colonists deserve to survive. Stephanie Burt, New Yorker, 1 Apr. 2026 The colonists awoke from their dream of lucrative plantations to find churches in ashes and molasses cauldrons rusting in the grass. Literary Hub, 19 Mar. 2026 The Quebec Act, which protected Catholicism in neighboring Quebec, was seen by some colonists as a threat and is reflected in grievances in the Declaration of Independence. ABC News, 17 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for colonist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonist
Noun
  • Much of this influence played a role in what would become the dialect of the South more generally as Scots Irish settlers and their descendants spread into the backcountry of the Upper and, a bit later, the Lowland South.
    Valerie Fridland, Big Think, 21 Apr. 2026
  • The removal came after the Indian Removal Act was passed and signed by President Andrew Jackson in 1830, as gold was discovered on Cherokee land and white settlers jockeyed for more acreage.
    Catherine Garcia, TheWeek, 21 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • Though ostracized in their time, people who resisted internment are now seen as civil-rights pioneers.
    Hua Hsu, New Yorker, 20 Apr. 2026
  • The artist, lawyer and running pioneer unveiled her self-portrait in bronze alongside the Hopkinton Town Green this spring — the first statue of a woman on the historic route to Boston.
    ABC News, ABC News, 17 Apr. 2026
Noun
  • The sharp drop in mortgage rates to below 3% from mid-2020 to early 2022 enabled folks to pay big numbers for their ranch or colonial and not cut back on dining out or cutting short the trip to Disney World.
    Shawn Tully, Fortune, 11 Apr. 2026
  • British control over the islands is a relic of its colonial past.
    Issy Ronald, CNN Money, 11 Apr. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Colonist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonist. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.

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