pilgrim

American  

[pil-grim, -gruhm] / ˈpɪl grɪm, -grəm /

noun

1. a person who journeys, especially a long distance, to some sacred place as an act of religious devotion.

   pilgrims to the Holy Land.

2. a traveler or wanderer, especially in a foreign place.

3. an original settler in a region.

4. (initial capital letter) one of the band of Puritans who founded the colony of Plymouth, Mass., in 1620.

5. a newcomer to a region or place, especially to the western U.S.

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pilgrim ¹ British  

/ ˈpɪlɡrɪm /

noun

1. a person who undertakes a journey to a sacred place as an act of religious devotion

2. any wayfarer

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Pilgrim ² British  

/ ˈpɪlɡrɪm /

noun

1. See Canterbury Pilgrims

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Other Word Forms

• pilgrimatic adjective
• pilgrimatical adjective

Etymology

Origin of pilgrim

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

Example Sentences

"After this year, will we be better able to recognise a pilgrim in the visitor, a seeker in the stranger, a neighbour in the foreigner, and fellow travellers in those who are different?"

From Barron's

Christmas 2025 also marks the end of the Catholic Church's Jubilee Holy Year, which has brought millions of pilgrims to Rome.

From Barron's

The trip inspired him to eventually build a business, Blue Diamond Travel, that brought religious pilgrims on similar trips.

From The Wall Street Journal

Many pilgrims arrived at the basilica with artifacts of devotion — mostly statues of Guadalupe from their local churches.

From Los Angeles Times

Addressing a crowd of an estimated 150,000 people — including much of Lebanon’s political class — Leo described himself as “a pilgrim of hope to the Middle East.”

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• settler
• traveler