compatriot

noun

com·​pa·​tri·​ot kəm-ˈpā-trē-ət How to pronounce compatriot (audio)
käm-
-trē-ˌät
chiefly British -ˈpa-
Synonyms of compatriotnext
1
: a person born, residing, or holding citizenship in the same country as another
We watched our compatriots compete in the Olympics.
2
: companion, colleague
her compatriots in academia
theater compatriots
compatriotic
kəm-ˌpā-trē-ˈä-tik How to pronounce compatriot (audio)
ˌkäm-
chiefly British -ˌpa-
adjective

Examples of compatriot in a Sentence

We watched our compatriots compete in the Olympics. the famous actor and his theater compatriots
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
The closest approximations were in San Francisco, where brothers Phil and John Burton held great sway, and Los Angeles, where another pair of siblings, Howard and Michael Berman, exercised enormous clout with their compatriot, Henry Waxman. Mark Z. Barabak, Mercury News, 4 Apr. 2026 This weekend, an Italian, Kimi Antonelli, won a Formula 1 race in Japan, while compatriots Marco Bezzecchi, the motorcycle racer, and Jannik Sinner, the Grand Slam tennis champion, won their own competitions. Andrew Greif, NBC news, 30 Mar. 2026 Those young content creators—with their long, shiny hair, mostly modest attire, affiliate links, and several children under five—walked so Paul and her #MomTok compatriots could run (perhaps a little too far). Elizabeth Gulino, Allure, 26 Mar. 2026 The team had brought on an old compatriot from EA as well as some AI specialists who were rewriting all of Proxi’s code. Eric Boodman, Vulture, 25 Mar. 2026 See All Example Sentences for compatriot

Word History

Etymology

French compatriote, from Late Latin compatriota, from Latin com- + Late Latin patriota fellow countryman — more at patriot

First Known Use

1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of compatriot was in 1611

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Compatriot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/compatriot. Accessed 5 Apr. 2026.

Kids Definition

compatriot

noun
com·​pa·​tri·​ot kəm-ˈpā-trē-ət How to pronounce compatriot (audio)
käm-
-trē-ˌät
: a person from one's own country : countryman

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