martyr
[ mahr-ter ]
/ ˈmɑr tər /
noun
a person who willingly suffers death rather than renounce his or her religion.
a person who is put to death or endures great suffering on behalf of any belief, principle, or cause: a martyr to the cause of social justice.
a person who undergoes severe or constant suffering: a martyr to severe headaches.
a person who seeks sympathy or attention by feigning or exaggerating pain, deprivation, etc.
verb (used with object)
to make a martyr of, especially by putting to death.
to torment or torture.
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RELATED WORDS
Nearby words
- martinson, harry,
- martinsville,
- martinů,
- martlet,
- martnet,
- martyrdom,
- martyred,
- martyrium,
- martyrize,
- martyrly
Origin of martyr
before 900; (noun) Middle English marter, Old English martyr < Late Latin < Late Greek mártyr, variant of Greek mártys, mártyros witness; (v.) Middle English martiren, Old English martyrian, derivative of noun
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for martyr
martyr
/ (ˈmɑːtə) /
noun
a person who suffers death rather than renounce his religious beliefs
a person who suffers greatly or dies for a cause, belief, etc
a person who suffers from poor health, misfortune, etche's a martyr to rheumatism
facetious, or derogatory a person who feigns suffering to gain sympathy, help, etc
verb Also: 'martyrˌize, 'martyrˌise (tr)
to kill as a martyr
to make a martyr of
Word Origin for martyr
Old English martir, from Church Latin martyr, from Late Greek martur-, martus witness
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