as in to attack
to kill (someone) for refusing to give up a belief or cause
—usually used as (be) martyred
He was martyred for his religious beliefs.
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Recent Examples of martyr
Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 19 May 2025
Still, in a totalitarian state, writers often became martyrs of free expression, dissidents like Vaclav Havel and Alexander Solzhenitsyn, refugees such as Czesław Miłosz and Joseph Brodsky.
—Ed Simon
june 23, Literary Hub, 23 June 2025
Lucas Aulbach, The Courier-Journal, 24 Dec. 2024
He apparently was martyred in Azerbaijan, which is an interesting tidbit.
—Alice Burton, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for martyr
Verb
Part of the regime’s new program is to produce a B-grade TV series, entitled The Rebel, that will highlight the heroic acts of a militant who died a martyr.
—Jordan Mintzer, HollywoodReporter, 19 May 2025
Still, in a totalitarian state, writers often became martyrs of free expression, dissidents like Vaclav Havel and Alexander Solzhenitsyn, refugees such as Czesław Miłosz and Joseph Brodsky.
—Ed Simon
june 23, Literary Hub, 23 June 2025
Noun
The myths are impossible to confirm hundreds of years later, Beach said, but the story is that Magnus was a Roman soldier who helped gather Christians to be martyred.
—Lucas Aulbach, The Courier-Journal, 24 Dec. 2024
He apparently was martyred in Azerbaijan, which is an interesting tidbit.
—Alice Burton, Vulture, 30 Aug. 2024
See All Example Sentences for martyr
Recent Examples of Synonyms for martyr
Verb
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After the match, Uso helped attack Sikoa’s MFTs and Fatu hit a picturesque moonsault off the top of the cage onto Loa and Mateo, getting some momentum back after a controversial defeat.—
Blake Oestriecher,
Forbes.com,
4 Aug. 2025
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Police responded to a call that an individual was being attacked by dogs at the Perris Hill Park in San Bernardino at around 5:00 p.m. local time on Thursday, July 31, KTLA and the Los Angeles Times reported.—
Escher Walcott,
People.com,
3 Aug. 2025
Noun
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Advertisement Vikram’s role as the final sacrifice Vikram Singh, a local police officer and Rea’s close ally, becomes the cult’s ultimate target.—
Isabella Wandermurem,
Time,
25 July 2025
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Looking Forward—Innovation Without Sacrifice The notion that innovation inevitably comes with sacrifices is outdated.—
Vincent Ledoux Pedailles,
Forbes.com,
24 July 2025
Verb
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Luis Leon, who received political asylum in the United States in 1987 after being tortured under Chilean dictator Augusto Pinochet's regime, misplaced his wallet that held his legal residency card, according to Allentown, Pennsylvania, newspaper The Morning Call.—
Billal Rahman,
MSNBC Newsweek,
21 July 2025
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Editor’s Pick From assassination plots to torture programs, the agency’s darkest operations have always been at the President’s behest.—
Kyle Chayka,
New Yorker,
16 July 2025
Noun
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More Mark Taylor/Getty Images Bleacher Report's Zachary D. Rymer has predicted that New York will be the biggest losers when the trade deadline is complete.—
Andrew Wright,
MSNBC Newsweek,
22 July 2025
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Order backlogs were a defining factor between winners and losers.—
Sarah Jones,
Sourcing Journal,
18 July 2025
Verb
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Each night, mysterious visitors torment Ahmed, whispering litanies in an incomprehensible language.—
Leo Barraclough,
Variety,
23 July 2025
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The original 1997 movie followed the two characters — then teenagers — as well as character portrayed by Ryan Phillippe and Prinze's wife Sarah Michelle Gellar, who are each tormented by the film's slasher-style fisherman villain one year after covering up a deadly car accident.—
Tommy McArdle,
People.com,
22 July 2025
Verb
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Teresa Romero, president of United Farm Workers, the labor union that has long represented California field hands from Mexico and other points outside the United States, said in a statement Saturday night that Garcia's death has left the organization anguished.—
Dennis Romero,
NBC news,
13 July 2025
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The senator from New Jersey and the governor of Kentucky both urged Democrats from around Florida to restore their party’s image, offered prescriptions for a resurgence, and inspired inspiration for party activists anguished about what’s happening under President Donald Trump.—
Anthony Man,
Sun Sentinel,
22 June 2025
Verb
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Soliman spent about four years at Cincinnati Children's, first arriving in the United States in 2014 after being persecuted in his native Egypt for work in support of freelance journalists.—
Patricia Gallagher Newberry,
The Enquirer,
25 July 2025
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The state government, closely aligned with Virginia’s de facto official Anglican church, persecuted Baptists during the 18th century.—
Joseph V Micallef,
Forbes.com,
26 June 2025
Verb
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Mohammad Omar had been plagued with medical problems since birth.—
Li-Lian Ahlskog Hou,
CNN Money,
22 July 2025
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That’s the kind of problem that leads to the rodent Rose Parade that’s plagued other restaurants on this street.—
David J. Neal,
Miami Herald,
21 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Martyr.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/martyr. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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