pilgrim

[pil-grim, -gruhm]

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.

pilgrim

¹

/ ˈpɪlɡrɪm /

noun

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

2. any wayfarer

Pilgrim

²

/ ˈpɪlɡrɪm /

noun

1. See Canterbury Pilgrims

Other Word Forms

• pilgrimatic adjective
• pilgrimatical adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of pilgrim¹

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of pilgrim¹

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

Example Sentences

The excavation is said to mark the route of a Roman-era street taken by pilgrims to the site revered by Jews as the location of two Biblical temples.

From BBC

There was no mention anywhere of the Africans abducted and enslaved by these “Christian pilgrims.”

From Salon

Thousands of Hindu pilgrims from India visit the temple every year.

From BBC

Coming from 20 countries, pilgrims are attending prayer vigils, masses and other activities this weekend - though they will not have a private audience with Pope Leo XIV.

From BBC

That began to change as the expansion of the Red Sea resorts brought thousands of pilgrims on day trips at peak times.

From BBC

Related Words

• settler 
• traveler