as in missioners
a person who is sent especially to a foreign country to do religious work (such as converting people to the religion or ministering to the sick)
The missionaries sent to the island were ultimately unsuccessful in converting the native residents.
Related Words
Relevance
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of missionaries
Marco Polo’s Il milione gained widespread popularity among 13th- and 14th-century Europeans, and accounts from missionaries and explorers were published for audiences who often financed these voyages.
—
Suzanne Dundas, Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Apr. 2026
In the 1890s, LDS missionaries brought their faith to Tonga, an archipelago in the South Pacific.
—ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
My friends and family also have this problem — my parents especially, since their home is rather remotely located, which seems to draw missionaries in droves.
—Judith Martin, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2026
The megahit comedy musical about religious missionaries in Uganda has been on Broadway since 2011 (minus a COVID-19 break) and is currently the 10th longest-running Broadway show of all time.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 8 Apr. 2026
These young female missionaries, dressed in white, have been sent into Canada to draw girls to Gilead’s cause.
—Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2026
The story is spread by the Aunts, who pray for her return, as well as missionaries from Gilead who hand out flyers demanding Nichole’s return.
—Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 8 Apr. 2026
But the presence in Iran of American missionaries and, later, invited government technocrats, was of an entirely different quality.
—Daniel Thomas Potts, The Conversation, 30 Mar. 2026
Others see a need for a covert way to support missionaries.
—Bracey Harris, NBC news, 28 Mar. 2026
Suzanne Dundas, Encyclopedia Britannica, 27 Apr. 2026
In the 1890s, LDS missionaries brought their faith to Tonga, an archipelago in the South Pacific.
—ABC News, 27 Apr. 2026
My friends and family also have this problem — my parents especially, since their home is rather remotely located, which seems to draw missionaries in droves.
—Judith Martin, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2026
The megahit comedy musical about religious missionaries in Uganda has been on Broadway since 2011 (minus a COVID-19 break) and is currently the 10th longest-running Broadway show of all time.
—Christopher Arnott, Hartford Courant, 8 Apr. 2026
These young female missionaries, dressed in white, have been sent into Canada to draw girls to Gilead’s cause.
—Culture Critic, Los Angeles Times, 8 Apr. 2026
The story is spread by the Aunts, who pray for her return, as well as missionaries from Gilead who hand out flyers demanding Nichole’s return.
—Jason Pham, StyleCaster, 8 Apr. 2026
But the presence in Iran of American missionaries and, later, invited government technocrats, was of an entirely different quality.
—Daniel Thomas Potts, The Conversation, 30 Mar. 2026
Others see a need for a covert way to support missionaries.
—Bracey Harris, NBC news, 28 Mar. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for missionaries
Noun
-
Nataliia had gone to the bus station, where soldiers were spraying foam to contain the nuclear fallout, and to the hospital, where men in white coats were unloading victims on stretchers from the backs of ambulances.—
Lizzie Johnson,
New Yorker,
25 Apr. 2026
-
Kozak said workers slept on floors and desks, with Russian soldiers occupying key areas.—
Hanna Arhirova,
Los Angeles Times,
25 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The Hippocratic doctors vigorously denounced the religious healers of the day, such as the priests toiling in the temple of Asclepius.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
28 Apr. 2026
-
The first female Anglican priests were ordained in 1994, its first female bishop in 2015, and now Mullally as the first archbishop of Canterbury.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Two monks sustained serious injuries, and one monk lost part of his leg as a result of the crash.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Missionaries.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/missionaries. Accessed 3 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
