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
Salt Cay’s biggest industry (salt production) began in the late 1600s, when British colonists from Bermuda developed the salinas (salt ponds) and the infrastructure.
—
Peter Kelly, Travel + Leisure, 18 Aug. 2025
Kruger was determined to establish a strong republic controlled by Afrikaners [South Africans descended from Dutch colonists].
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 15 Aug. 2025
The Robinsons, a family of space colonists leave an over-populated Earth in search of a new world.
—Jim Clash, Forbes.com, 8 Aug. 2025
All subsequent efforts to locate the colonists failed for various reasons, and rumors of their fate ranged widely.
—Mike Bezemek, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for colonist
Recent Examples of Synonyms for colonist
Noun
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Ringneck pheasants were established 20 years later, and most of the new settlers became pheasant hunters rather than grouse hunters.—
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The art will encompass the stories of Black people who journeyed north to escape slavery and the early Westfield settlers who ran safehouses that harbored them during their travels.—
Noun
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France and Nordic countries, pioneers in subsidized childcare and paid parental leave, maintain relatively higher fertility than peers.—
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French smart telescope pioneer Vaonis helps quench my thirst with a special edition of its flagship that puts the inner workings on view.—
Noun
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But Danish colonial authority – now focused mainly on foreign, defense and economic policy – is facing an unprecedented challenge, and the Scandinavian kingdom is at pains to underline and maintain its military control.—
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Whose idea was this, and what kinds of settler-colonial relations does this mock holdup invert?—
Cite this Entry
“Colonist.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/colonist. Accessed 3 Oct. 2025.
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