as in persecuted
to kill (someone) for refusing to give up a belief or cause
—usually used as (be) martyred
He was martyred for his religious beliefs.
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Recent Examples of martyred
Charlie Kirk invited me to speak at Amfest a few weeks ago before he was martyred.
—
Mandy Taheri
jason Lemon, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
His desperate, lacerating Teddy is a character who has ruined his own life, who has martyred himself out of his devotion to The Truth.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
But closer to me, and with greater incident, these phrases are inflected by the voice of Hiba Abu Nada, the Gazan poet who was martyred in an Israeli airstrike on October 20, 2023.
—Huda Fakhreddine
august 28, Literary Hub, 28 Aug. 2025
Mandy Taheri
jason Lemon, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 Sep. 2025
His desperate, lacerating Teddy is a character who has ruined his own life, who has martyred himself out of his devotion to The Truth.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 28 Aug. 2025
But closer to me, and with greater incident, these phrases are inflected by the voice of Hiba Abu Nada, the Gazan poet who was martyred in an Israeli airstrike on October 20, 2023.
—Huda Fakhreddine
august 28, Literary Hub, 28 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for martyred
Verb
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Mattarella condemned the complicity of ordinary Italians in the fascist-era racial laws, which persecuted Italy’s Jewish community, and deportation of its Jews.—
Vanessa Gera,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The Kurds have been marginalized, persecuted and slaughtered by the likes of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and before those states existed, the Ottoman Empire.—
Voice of the People,
New York Daily News,
26 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
The regime imprisoned Nejati and reportedly tortured him.—
Benjamin Weinthal,
FOXNews.com,
29 Jan. 2026
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And so even people who were heroes of the nation, they were beaten, tortured, taken for reeducation.—
Anne Applebaum,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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One study in 2020 surveyed 261 herders in Mongolia, another common habitat for snow leopards; while many reported having seen snow leopards, or had their livestock attacked by snow leopards, none reported any attacks on humans.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
27 Jan. 2026
-
The upstream piranhas attacked her, and her blood flowing downstream attracted the rest of the piranhas, leaving the creek clear for the herd to cross.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Essie Davis plays Amelia, who struggles to raise her 6-year-old son, Sam (Noah Wiseman), as he's tormented by the titular humanoid storybook monster.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
31 Jan. 2026
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Bishop is clearly still tormented by his role in convicting the men.—
Beandrea July,
IndieWire,
29 Jan. 2026
Verb
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Some Republicans have assailed the agency as overregulating industry.—
Nick Coltrain,
Denver Post,
27 Jan. 2026
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In the final days of his presidency, Joe Biden was similarly assailed for granting a broad pardon to his son Hunter for any offenses committed over the span of more than a decade—as well as for preemptively pardoning a swath of other members of his family and administration.—
Bernadette Meyler,
Harpers Magazine,
27 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
At least 50 people had been reported dead in states afflicted by the dangerous cold.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
29 Jan. 2026
-
Officials in states afflicted with severe cold reported at least 50 deaths.—
Stephen Sorace,
FOXNews.com,
28 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The militants at the time besieged it for months before being pushed back.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
23 Jan. 2026
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To watch Herbert’s film is like watching a report on a place that has subsequently been besieged.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
23 Jan. 2026
Verb
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As spectators, we are cursed to be onlookers — powerless to help, despite our desire to.—
Blake Simons,
IndieWire,
26 Jan. 2026
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They are obligated to live in a state of unceasing anxiety, superstition, and fear of their team being cursed.—
Kaitlyn Tiffany,
The Atlantic,
23 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Martyred.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/martyred. Accessed 3 Feb. 2026.
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