conquistador

American  

[kon-kwis-tuh-dawr, kong-, kawng-kees-tah-thawr] / kɒnˈkwɪs təˌdɔr, kɒŋ-, kɔŋˌkis tɑˈðɔr /

noun

plural

conquistadors,

plural

conquistadores

1. one of the Spanish conquerors of Mexico and Peru in the 16th century.

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conquistador British  

/ kɒnˈkwɪstəˌdɔː, konkistaˈðor /

noun

1. an adventurer or conqueror, esp one of the Spanish conquerors of the New World in the 16th century

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Etymology

Origin of conquistador

1540–50; < Spanish equivalent to conquist ( ar ) to conquer ( conquest ) + -ador -ator

Example Sentences

However, once Hernán Cortés triumphed, the conquistadors went from waging war — vanquishing the Aztecs — to the project of subjugating Indigenous holdouts and building a self-sustaining territory loyal to the crown.

From Los Angeles Times

Characterized as “myths,” for example, were the age-old beliefs that Native Americans mistook the conquistadors for gods, and that a mere handful of Spaniards toppled great empires with ease.

From The Wall Street Journal

A new take on the Dark Knight comic book hero that faces off against conquistador Hernán Cortés.

From Los Angeles Times

Sporting a conquistador moustache and thighs as thick as a gaucho's steak, the culture shock was severe when the Argentina wing arrived at Harlequins.

From BBC

Though the conquistadors enjoyed superior technology, including steel weapons and gunpowder, European diseases such as smallpox and measles proved more decisive, taking untold millions of indigenous lives.

From The Wall Street Journal