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zealot

noun

ˈze-lət How to pronounce zealot (audio)
Definition of zealotnext
as in partisan
one who is intensely or excessively devoted to a cause zealots on both sides of the issue resorted to name-calling and scare tactics

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 zealot Traditional safety zealot Phil Koopman points out that the public would not accept a system that cuts fatalities by 80% but the remaining ones are all children. — Brad Templeton, Forbes.com, 7 July 2026 Garrett says the new protocols acknowledge that academic institutions have the responsibility to take steps for the safety of their researchers and protect them from potentially dangerous interactions with conspiracy theorists and other reactionary zealots. — Emma Gometz, Scientific American, 12 June 2026 March 13, 2026 For Gen Z neophytes and hardcore fans overseas (South Asian and Nigerian Mike zealots apparently have a lot to say on the matter), the idea of MJ/Prince ever being a rivalry is laughable. — Keith Murphy, VIBE.com, 7 June 2026 The drama takes place in a dystopian future where the American government has been overthrown by evangelical religious zealots. — Tanya Melendez, Entertainment Weekly, 25 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for zealot
Recent Examples of Synonyms for zealot
  1. partisan
  2. militant
  3. crusader
  4. activist
  5. fanatic
Noun
  • Eventually, Sinclair partisans took matters into their own hands by heckling the fake newsreels and disrupting screenings.
    — Thomas Doherty, HollywoodReporter, 19 Sep. 2026
  • Harald paid tribute to the Norwegian partisans who had fought alongside the Soviets during World War II, helping to restore the memory of a segment of the population that had long been marginalized in the official narrative of the war.
    — Stefania Conrieri, Vanity Fair, 28 Aug. 2026
Definition of partisan
Noun
  • Israel says militants posing as journalists have used such protections to collect intelligence and help target Israeli forces.
    — Joseph Krauss, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026
  • Pakistan has repeatedly accused Afghanistan’s Taliban government of allowing militants to operate from its territory and carry out attacks across the border, an accusation that Kabul denies.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 23 Sep. 2026
Definition of militant
Noun
  • Over his shoulder was an enormous portrait of the hatchet-wielding temperance crusader Carrie Nation, an icon of resistance to the excesses of the first Gilded Age, when similar discontent had roiled the prairies.
    — Kyle Paoletta, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026
  • Sybylla’s bridge to her potential new future is most often her grandmother’s unlikely best friend, Augusta (Kate Mulvany), a wealthy crusader for women’s causes who decides to champion Sybylla’s literary ambitions.
    — Inkoo Kang, New Yorker, 10 Sep. 2026
Definition of crusader
Noun
  • Kennedy, a longtime antivaccine activist, chaired Children’s Health Defense for years.
    — Fatima Hussein, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2026
  • According to the insider, the baby’s middle name, Bean, is a reference to late singer and activist Carl Bean, who co-founded the Unity Fellowship Church Movement, a faith group that welcomed the LGBTQ+ community.
    — Marzia Nicolini, Vanity Fair, 19 Sep. 2026
Definition of activist
Noun
  • Slow Horses fanatics will recognize her as one of the veteran MI5 operatives stuck in the agency’s version of purgatory, known as Slough House.
    — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 13 Sep. 2026
  • Nineteen fanatics, acting in the name of Islam, killed 2,997 innocent men, women and children in New York City, in Washington, and on airplanes turned into weapons of mass murder.
    — New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 11 Sep. 2026
Definition of fanatic

Browse Nearby Words

zeal
zealot
zealotry
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Cite this Entry

“Zealot.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/zealot. Accessed 26 Sep. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on zealot

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about zealot

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