suitor
Americannoun
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suitors
plural
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a man who courts or woos a woman.
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Law. a petitioner or plaintiff.
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a person who sues or petitions for anything.
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Informal. an individual who seeks to buy a business.
noun
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a man who courts a woman; wooer
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law a person who brings a suit in a court of law; plaintiff
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rare a person who makes a request or appeal for anything
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of suitor
1250–1300; Middle English s ( e ) utor, suitour < Anglo-French < Latin secūtor, equivalent to secū-, variant stem of sequī to follow + -tor -tor
Explanation
A suitor is a guy who asks you out on a date. You can describe your sister's prom escort as her suitor. The noun suitor is an old fashioned word for a somewhat old fashioned kind of person: a man who woos or courts a woman. If a boy serenades you from below your bedroom window, he is your suitor, especially if he hopes to marry you one day. In the fourteenth century, a suitor was a fan or follower — the romantic meaning came along almost two hundred years later. The root is the Latin word sequi, "to attend or follow."
Vocabulary lists containing suitor
The Odyssey
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Much Ado About Nothing
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The Suffix -or, Part 1
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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.
See Examples For:
There are no guarantees a deal will come together, as talks could still fall apart or another suitor could emerge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 2026
While working his way back home, he’s forced to outsmart a vicious beast at close quarters, and he takes up residence with a suitor.
From Salon ● Aug. 16, 2026
Robert Pattinson’s oily suitor woos Penelope like a “Bachelorette” contestant: “It’s time to live again,” he urges her, certain that Penelope’s vengeful husband won’t come back.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 15, 2026
No-frills airline EasyJet says it has agreed in principle to a £5.7bn takeover proposal from US firm Apollo Management - just days after it had accepted an offer from a rival suitor.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
Strategy A will result in Myrtle’s choosing the best suitor in eleven of the twenty-four instances, while strategy B will result in success in ten of the twenty-four instances.
From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos
A social media influencer accused of ripping off wealthy suitors is competent to stand trial in Los Angeles County on criminal charges that she seduced and stole from rich men, a judge announced Friday.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 9, 2026
The show, which will launch next year, will follow the familiar format of love-seeking contestants choosing between three potential suitors who are hidden behind a wall.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
The fact that none of Penelope’s suitors could do that marked them as unfit to take his place as Ithaca’s king.
From Salon ● Aug. 2, 2026
BP on Friday said it was "launching a process to market its North Sea business for a potential sale", without being drawn on any potential suitors.
From Barron's ● Jul. 31, 2026
She had many suitors but rejected all offers of marriage.
From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan
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.
