Synonyms of missionary

missionary 1 of 2

noun

as in missioner

a person who is sent especially to a foreign country to do religious work (such as converting people to the religion or ministering to the sick)

The missionaries sent to the island were ultimately unsuccessful in converting the native residents.

Related Words

• missioner
• soldier
• priest
• monk
• apostle
• minister
• preacher
• religious
• evangelist
• bishop
• revivalist
• deacon
• clergyman
• friar
• scholar
• pastor
• reverend
• monastic
• clerical
• ecclesiastic
• mendicant
• padre
• proselytizer
• cleric
• student
• churchman
• deaconess
• chaplain
• prelate
• diocesan
• vicar
• divine
• pope
• archbishop
• priestess
• curé
• presbyter
• dean
• parson
• rector
• dominie
• abbot
• clerk
• father
• abbé
• oblate
• confessor
• clergyperson
• shepherd
• monsignor
• advocate
• faithful
• curate
• supporter
• partisan
• protégé
• disciple
• clergywoman
• loyalist
• Holy Joe
• archpriest
• high priest
• devotee
• high priestess
• champion
• worshipper
• zealot
• enthusiast
• fan
• adherent
• sectarian
• ideologist
• sky pilot
• acolyte
• admirer
• idolater
• follower
• ideologue
• pupil
• votary
• cultist
• backer
• convert
• liege man
• epigone
• votarist

Dissimilar Words

• renegade
• traitor
• defector
• apostate
• leader
• turncoat
• secular
• layman
• layperson
• lector
• lay reader
• coryphaeus

missionary

2 of 2

adjective

as in apostolic

relating to missionaries or their work

The church organizes missionary trips to a variety of countries.

Related Words

• apostolic
• evangelical
• papal
• religious
• pastoral
• episcopal
• diocesan
• ecclesiastical
• ecclesiastic
• pontifical
• patriarchal
• diaconal
• canonical
• churchly
• sacramental
• divine
• monastic
• mendicant
• conventual
• holy
• ministerial
• clerical
• rabbinic
• sacerdotal
• priestly
• monachal
• caliphal
• clerkly

Dissimilar Words

• secular
• lay
• temporal
• nonclerical

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of missionary

Noun

The church’s origins date to the arrival of Christian missionaries in Mombasa in 1844, and its membership has long represented a diverse cross section of Kenyan society, with members of various ethnicities and social strata. — Stephanie Triplettall, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7 Aug. 2026

Not surprisingly, playing a Mormon missionary, even one being psychologically tortured by a creepy English recluse, was not a huge stretch for Thatcher. — Benjamin Svetkey, HollywoodReporter, 3 Aug. 2026

Adjective

Built in the 19th century as a missionary complex, the school embodies layers of history for which Rome is known. — Maria Mocerino, Interesting Engineering, 14 June 2026

Two other American missionary doctors in Congo, Peter Stafford and Rebekah Stafford, were also exposed and evacuated. — Nikol Mudrová, USA Today, 11 June 2026