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.
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as in apostolic
relating to missionaries or their work
The church organizes missionary trips to a variety of countries.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of missionary
Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 15 May 2025
Broadway San Diego presents the national touring production of this comedy musical about a pair of bumbling missionaries who get creative when their recruiting efforts in Africa fall flat.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 June 2025
Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, 21 May 2025
Pope Leo was born in Chicago and gained missionary experience in Peru before serving as the bishop of the city of Chiclayo.
—Abigail Adams, People.com, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for missionary
Noun
Their release was made to look like an escape by the gang, which is being accused of abducting the missionaries, including five children, as a bargaining chip to help secure Joly’s release from a Haitian prison.
—Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 15 May 2025
Broadway San Diego presents the national touring production of this comedy musical about a pair of bumbling missionaries who get creative when their recruiting efforts in Africa fall flat.
—San Diego Union-Tribune, 9 June 2025
Adjective
Along with the trickling river and a dam that dates to the early Spanish missionary days, the landscape includes 65 miles of trails on more than 8,000 acres of rugged mountains, hills and valleys.
—Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, 21 May 2025
Pope Leo was born in Chicago and gained missionary experience in Peru before serving as the bishop of the city of Chiclayo.
—Abigail Adams, People.com, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for missionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for missionary
Noun
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Kelley Hudlow, missioner for clergy formation for the diocese, told NBC affiliate WVTM of Birmingham soon after the shooting that church leaders were trying to learn more.—
Phil Helsel,
NBC News,
17 June 2022
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Eby will continue to serve as outreach missioner at the Church of the Nativity and as priest-in-charge at St. Timothy’s Church in Athens.—
al,
al,
1 Dec. 2020
Adjective
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View Comments The Friday event, which took place inside the Vatican’s apostolic palace, included a roundtable discussion on AI ethics and governance.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN Money,
20 June 2025
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The Friday event, which took place inside the Vatican’s apostolic palace, included a roundtable discussion on AI ethics and governance.—
CNN.com,
Mercury News,
20 June 2025
Noun
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His Telegram channel, followed by around half a million users, regularly features narrated footage of drones tracking and killing Russian soldiers.—
Jesus Mesa,
MSNBC Newsweek,
25 June 2025
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The biggest revelation in both movies is that throughout the war Lucas had heroin shipped to the U.S. from Vietnam in coffins containing dead soldiers.—
Steve Bloom,
HollywoodReporter,
24 June 2025
Adjective
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What truly reshaped my thinking was hearing personal stories from pro-life evangelical women who have had abortions.—
Ed Gaskin,
Boston Herald,
27 June 2025
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Wilson grew up in the town, where his father was an evangelical minister.—
Samuel Perry,
The Conversation,
20 June 2025
Noun
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Nevertheless, the walking dead break in anyway and the boy runs for his life, hiding out in a church where his father is the priest.—
Damon Wise,
Deadline,
18 June 2025
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But, in many ways, Chryseis—in spite of the apparent privileging of her name and her identity as a priest’s daughter that makes its way into the later stories about her—is the more silent, the more difficult to bring back to life, of the two.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
13 June 2025
Noun
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The sculpted gardens and monastery, where monks still pray, sit across the lagoon from the famous Piazza San Marco and would provide an intimate setting ideal for a dinner.—
Barbie Latza Nadeau,
CNN Money,
23 June 2025
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Children parade through the streets with glowing floats, and monks chant late into the night.—
Lauren Mowery,
Forbes.com,
18 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Missionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/missionary. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.
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