as in settler
a person who settles in a new region
over time the colonists began to sense that they were becoming a people unto themselves
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Recent Examples of colonist
Pushed by the Spanish colonists, with the support of neighboring Indigenous groups, most settled offshore by the 17th century.
—
Mark Johanson, AFAR Media, 22 Apr. 2025
The colonists settled mainly in the Colorado and Brazos river basins.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025
For millennia, Indigenous peoples in North America, and later European colonists, derived part of their year-round sustenance from juneberry.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 27 June 2025
The first European colonists, too, marveled at the bounty.
—Boyce Upholt, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for colonist
Mark Johanson, AFAR Media, 22 Apr. 2025
The colonists settled mainly in the Colorado and Brazos river basins.
—Michael Barnes, Austin American Statesman, 2 July 2025
For millennia, Indigenous peoples in North America, and later European colonists, derived part of their year-round sustenance from juneberry.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 27 June 2025
The first European colonists, too, marveled at the bounty.
—Boyce Upholt, Smithsonian Magazine, 25 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for colonist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonist
Noun
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John Nielsen-Gammon, the state’s climatologist and a Texas A&M University atmospheric science professor, said early settlers also made the area more prone to wildfires through widespread clearing and logging in the late 1800s.—
Bianca Moreno-Paz,
Austin American Statesman,
30 July 2025
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Israeli soldiers and settlers have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in the occupied West Bank since the start of the war between Israel and Gaza in October 2023.—
Emily Zemler,
Rolling Stone,
29 July 2025
Noun
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Bronson doesn’t shy away from the brutalities of the fighting between the pioneers and the Shawnee and Miami tribes, as seen from the perspective of the settlers.—
Jeff Suess,
The Enquirer,
30 July 2025
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The problem is, there are so many places to spend — and catch up, since so many fashion players like to be fast followers instead of pioneers.—
Evan Clark,
Footwear News,
29 July 2025
Noun
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Where the local militia drilled in colonial times, a symphony now plays on the Fourth of July holiday.—
Reader Commentary,
Baltimore Sun,
10 July 2025
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Ancient structures and artifacts show that humans have lived around Lake Titicaca since before colonial times and continue to live there today.—
Kenna Hughes-Castleberry,
Space.com,
9 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Colonist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonist. Accessed 7 Aug. 2025.
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