warrior
Americannoun
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a person engaged or experienced in warfare; soldier.
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a person who shows or has shown great vigor, courage, or aggressiveness, as in politics or athletics.
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of warrior
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English werreieor, from Old North French; equivalent to war 1 + -or 2
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How does warrior compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Although logically linked with someone engaged in war, a warrior can be anyone who fights the good fight, whether in politics, on the job, or just as a "weekend warrior" trying to accomplish multiple tasks during off-hours at home. As the Old French guerre meant "war," it led to the word guerreor for someone who wages war. This eventually morphed into the word we know as warrior. The word can also refer to someone fighting a philosophical or political war. Author Carlos Castandeda said, "Nobody is born a warrior, in exactly the same way that nobody is born an average man. We make ourselves into one or the other.” After ridding the kitchen of ants, you felt like a proud warrior.
Vocabulary lists containing warrior
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Some have depicted him as a king, a superhero, a doctor, a warrior or a religious figure.
From Salon • Jun. 6, 2026
The Surrey man is a more reserved character – an assassin rather than a warrior.
From BBC • Jun. 2, 2026
He slinks along a wall, scales a cliff, navigates drain pipes and leaps up and down from his preferred perch—behind the left shoulder of Din Djarin, aka the Mandalorian warrior.
From The Wall Street Journal • May 22, 2026
The hedge-fund founder turned environmental warrior has spent nearly $1 billion on his political pursuits.
From Los Angeles Times • May 19, 2026
"We could use a warrior now, Your Majesty."
From "City of the Plague God" by Sarwat Chadda
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
