pilgrim

[ pil-grim, -gruh m ]
/ ˈpɪl grɪm, -grəm /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR pilgrim ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person who journeys, especially a long distance, to some sacred place as an act of religious devotion: pilgrims to the Holy Land.
a traveler or wanderer, especially in a foreign place.
an original settler in a region.
(initial capital letter) one of the band of Puritans who founded the colony of Plymouth, Mass., in 1620.
a newcomer to a region or place, especially to the western U.S.

Origin of pilgrim

1150–1200; Middle English pilegrim, pelegrim, cognate with Old Frisian pilegrīm, Middle Low German pelegrīm, Old High German piligrīm, Old Norse pīlagrīmr, all < Medieval Latin pelegrīnus, dissimilated variant of Latin peregrīnus peregrine

OTHER WORDS FROM pilgrim

pil·gri·mat·ic, pil·gri·mat·i·cal, adjective

Words nearby pilgrim

pileus, pilewort, pilfer, pilferage, pilgarlic, pilgrim, pilgrim bottle, pilgrim fathers, pilgrim's progress, pilgrimage, pilgrimage of grace

Words related to pilgrim

traveler, settler, crusader, wanderer, pioneer, sojourner

Example sentences from the Web for pilgrim

British Dictionary definitions for pilgrim (1 of 2)

pilgrim
/ (ˈpɪlɡrɪm) /

noun

a person who undertakes a journey to a sacred place as an act of religious devotion
any wayfarer

Word Origin for pilgrim

C12: from Provençal pelegrin, from Latin peregrīnus foreign, from per through + ager field, land; see peregrine

British Dictionary definitions for pilgrim (2 of 2)

Pilgrim
/ (ˈpɪlɡrɪm) /

noun

See Canterbury Pilgrims (def. 2)