crusade

1 of 2

noun

cru·​sade krü-ˈsād 

1

capitalized : any of the military expeditions undertaken by Christian powers in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries to win the Holy Land from the Muslims

2

: a remedial enterprise undertaken with zeal and enthusiasm

a crusade against drunk driving

crusade

2 of 2

verb

crusaded; crusading

intransitive verb

: to engage in a crusade

Did you know?

In 1095, when Palestinian lands were held by Muslims, Pope Urban II exhorted Christians to reclaim the Holy Sepulchre and other venerated sites. Those who responded wore crosses of cloth on their breasts to identify themselves as soldiers in Christ’s army. Medieval French words for such holy wars were croisement, croiserie, croisée, and croisade, all derivatives of crois, meaning “cross.” In the 18th century, long after the crusades themselves had ceased, English borrowed both French croisade and the Spanish cruzado (likewise formed from a word meaning “cross”), blending the two to produce crusade.

Synonyms

Noun

• bandwagon
• blitz
• campaign
• cause
• drive
• juggernaut
• movement
• push

Examples of crusade in a Sentence

Noun

a grassroots crusade for spending more money on our public schools

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

His Securities and Exchange Commission has issued a raft of rules constraining the conduct of financial institutions; his Federal Trade Commission and Justice Department have begun an aggressive antitrust crusade; and his National Labor Relations Board has pursued an unambiguously pro-union agenda. —Jonathan Mahler Edoardo Ballerini Emma Kehlbeck Joel Thibodeau, New York Times, 7 Apr. 2024

Think of George Szell’s pursuit of precision at the Cleveland Orchestra, Koussevitzky’s energetic fostering of American music in Boston, Stokowski’s modernist crusades in Philadelphia, Bernstein’s glamorous revolution at the New York Philharmonic. —Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 2 Apr. 2024

Clay had delivered, framing Connecticut’s gubernatorial race as a kickoff to an antislavery crusade, to culminate with Republicans winning the presidency in November. —Jon Grinspan, Smithsonian Magazine, 1 Apr. 2024

What possesses the wealthy scion of one of America’s greatest industrialist families to embark on a late-in-life crusade to overhaul the fundamental infrastructure of the entire internet? —Paolo Confino, Fortune, 16 Mar. 2024

There’s no pro-life crusade against in vitro fertilization. —The Editors, National Review, 23 Feb. 2024

Some of Ackman’s friends and former classmates have mixed feelings about his Harvard crusade. —Elizabeth Dwoskin, Washington Post, 10 Feb. 2024

Only once the British government agreed to include Alderney in the memorial, and publicly stated that thousands died on the island, would James move on from his crusade. —Rebecca Panovka, Harper's Magazine, 9 Feb. 2024

But that’s just the beginning of this Black man’s crusade against economic injustice. —Peter Debruge, Variety, 10 Mar. 2024

Verb

McCain, who in 2017 brought the perspective of a staunch conservative and pre-Trump Republican to her co-hosting duties at The View until departing in 2021, has crusaded for her late father’s legacy. —Kevin Dolak, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Apr. 2024

Navalny, who had long crusaded for free and fair elections in Russia and was blocked from running for president in 2018, had urged Russians to vote against Putin at noon Sunday. —Robyn Dixon, Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2024

Navalny, the fiercest foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin who crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests, died in prison Friday Feb. 16, 2024 Russia's prison agency said. —Jim Heintz, arkansasonline.com, 17 Feb. 2024

Epic Games, which has spent years crusading against the massive cut Apple demands for in-app sales, and which intends to launch its own iOS app store in the EU later this year, is the most notable example. —David Meyer, Fortune, 26 Jan. 2024

Russian authorities said that Alexei Navalny, the fiercest foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin who crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests, died in prison. —Alan Taylor, The Atlantic, 23 Feb. 2024

Navalny, 47, crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests. —Kim Hjelmgaard, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2024

Alexei Navalny, the fiercest foe of Russian President Vladimir Putin who crusaded against official corruption and staged massive anti-Kremlin protests, died in prison Friday Feb. 16, 2024 Russia's prison agency said. —Jim Heintz, arkansasonline.com, 17 Feb. 2024

Friedman, who was concerned more with crusading executives than crusading investors, thought shareholders would mostly desire profit. —Walter Frick, Fortune, 8 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Noun and Verb

blend of Middle French croisade & Spanish cruzada; both ultimately from Latin cruc-, crux cross

First Known Use

Noun

circa 1708, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb

1732, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

crusade

1 of 2 noun

cru·​sade krü-ˈsād 

1

capitalized : any of the military expeditions made by Christian countries in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims

2

: a campaign to get things changed for the better

a crusade against crime

crusade

2 of 2 verb

crusaded; crusading

: to take part in a crusade

crusader noun

Etymology

Noun

derived from early French croisade and Spanish cruzada, both meaning literally "an expedition of persons marked with or bearing the sign of the cross" and both derived from Latin cruc-, crux "cross" — related to cross