adventurer
Americannoun
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adventurers
plural
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a person who has, enjoys, or seeks adventures.
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a seeker of fortune in daring enterprises; soldier of fortune.
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a person who undertakes great commercial risk; speculator.
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a person who seeks power, wealth, or social rank by unscrupulous or questionable means.
They thought John was an adventurer and after their daughter's money.
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Usually Adventurer a member of Camp Fire, Inc., who is between the ages of 9 and 11.
noun
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a person who seeks adventure, esp one who seeks success or money through daring exploits
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a person who seeks money or power by unscrupulous means
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a speculator
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of adventurer
Explanation
If you boldly travel to exotic and unexplored locations, you're an adventurer. One thing all adventurers have in common is a willingness to face risks and even danger in pursuit of excitement. Being an adventurer might mean scaling the highest mountains, diving to the bottom of the ocean — or for a very young child, riding a bike all the way to the end of the block. Many adventurers love to travel, particularly to rugged or unfamiliar locations. If you love adventure, you can call yourself an adventurer. Both words stem from the Latin adventura, "about to happen."
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.
See Examples For:
An adventurer has completed the first leg of his latest challenge after losing contact with his UK team for almost 24 hours.
From BBC ● Oct. 27, 2026
The British adventurer makes her acrobatic moves against a background of realistic graphics, complete with her trademark sarcastic quips.
From Barron's ● Sep. 2, 2026
The obituary described Flynn as “an adventurer with a penchant for fighting and romance.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
In 1979, she founded the Wulff School of Fly Fishing with her husband, Lee Wulff, an adventurer who died in a plane crash in 1991.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 5, 2026
Here the adventurer and king sat down; then carefully Penelope began: “Friend, let me ask you first of all: who are you, where do you come from, of what nation and parents were you born?”
From "The Odyssey" by Homer
Nepal is home to eight of the world's 10 highest peaks and welcomes hundreds of adventurers each spring.
From Barron's ● May 22, 2026
Figures like Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon were adventurers, and while perhaps not personally admirable, they changed history and changed it irrevocably:
From Salon ● Mar. 28, 2026
The adventurers reckon that they’re probably safe because it’s off-season for the toothy beasts.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 26, 2026
The mountain’s close proximity to Los Angeles, coupled with social media content promoting the hike, encourages inexperienced adventurers, Fordham said, with “zero regard to the actual danger they’re putting themselves in.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 31, 2025
The adventurers knew all too well that it was dangerous to try to paddle their six canoes through the churning waters, and they couldn’t risk losing any more canoes or food.
From "Death on the River of Doubt" by Samantha Seiple
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
