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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Recent Examples of missionary
The New Yorker, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Another appearance in print occurs in 1880, in the memoirs of a Canadian missionary called Sheldon Jackson—also a prominent founder of schools where Native children were forcibly assimilated.
—Glenn Adamson, Artforum, 2 May 2026
Olivia Empson, Vanity Fair, 27 Mar. 2026
While Quebec's largest city was first founded as a missionary center rather than a fur-trading post, as was the case with several other Canadian cities, the proceeding centuries have seen Montreal more than make up for its nonmaterialist origins.
—Charlie Hobbs, Condé Nast Traveler, 27 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for missionary
Noun
In the late eighteen-hundreds, American missionaries in Korea converted thousands of people.
—The New Yorker, New Yorker, 4 May 2026
Another appearance in print occurs in 1880, in the memoirs of a Canadian missionary called Sheldon Jackson—also a prominent founder of schools where Native children were forcibly assimilated.
—Glenn Adamson, Artforum, 2 May 2026
Adjective
The alumni network is narrow, with graduates mostly appearing to funnel into the familiar pipeline of pastors, missionary, or ministry leader roles.
—Olivia Empson, Vanity Fair, 27 Mar. 2026
While Quebec's largest city was first founded as a missionary center rather than a fur-trading post, as was the case with several other Canadian cities, the proceeding centuries have seen Montreal more than make up for its nonmaterialist origins.
—Charlie Hobbs, Condé Nast Traveler, 27 Mar. 2026
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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On June 2, 1979, Pope John Paul II set out from Rome on an apostolic journey, as papal trips away from the Vatican are called.—
Paul Elie,
New Yorker,
8 May 2026
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The leader of the Roman Catholic Church directed his remarks to university students at the Catholic University of Central Africa in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon, during an 11-day apostolic journey in Africa.—
Bonny Chu,
FOXNews.com,
21 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The clinic was close to the partition, where Israeli soldiers often fired their weapons.—
Clayton Dalton,
New Yorker,
15 May 2026
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During the hike, one of the soldiers fell into the ocean.—
David Chiu,
PEOPLE,
14 May 2026
Adjective
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Joni Lamb, cofounder and president of the evangelical Christian TV network Daystar, has died.—
Taijuan Moorman,
USA Today,
8 May 2026
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Trump has seen declines with other key base voting groups, like white evangelical Christians and rural voters.—
Domenico Montanaro,
NPR,
6 May 2026
Noun
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Paradise Metal—the debut of Father Dionysios Tabakis, a 53-year-old priest in Nafplio, a small Greek city off the Argolic Gulf—is actually a series of epiphanies, an ostensible curiosity that functions as an object lesson about expectations.—
Grayson Haver Currin,
Pitchfork,
14 May 2026
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At one point, his condition seemed so dire that a priest was called to provide Giuliani his last rites, a Catholic sacrament often administered to the dying.—
Jessica Schladebeck,
New York Daily News,
14 May 2026
Noun
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On May 6, 2026, a historic ceremony was held where a robot received the Buddhist precepts from a monk.—
Neetika Walter,
Interesting Engineering,
6 May 2026
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Additionally, the Vietnamese monk Thich Nhat Hanh attracted attention in the United States not only with his opposition to the Vietnam War but also with his notion of Engaged Buddhism, which emphasizes improving human life through political activism and everyday acts of mindfulness.—
Charles Preston,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
30 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Missionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/missionary. Accessed 16 May. 2026.
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