Viking

American  

[vahy-king] / ˈvaɪ kɪŋ /

noun

(sometimes lowercase)

• Vikings
  plural

1. any of the Scandinavian pirates who plundered the coasts of Europe from the 8th to 10th centuries.

2. a sea-roving bandit; pirate.

3. a Scandinavian.

4. U.S. Aerospace. one of a series of space probes that obtained scientific information about Mars.

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Viking British  

/ ˈvaɪkɪŋ /

noun

1. Also called: Norseman, Northman. any of the Danes, Norwegians, and Swedes who raided by sea most of N and W Europe from the 8th to the 11th centuries, later often settling, as in parts of Britain

2. any sea rover, plunderer, or pirate

3. either of two unmanned American spacecraft that reached Mars in 1976

4. (modifier) of, relating to, or characteristic of a Viking or Vikings

   a Viking ship

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• Vikings
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Viking

1800–10; < Scandinavian; compare Old Norse vīkingr; compare Old English wīcing pirate; etymology disputed

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Viking Vikings

The whole Viking bit, which might otherwise have been dismissed as a stereotype, instead became the team’s identity, right down to the runic-style characters on the Norwegian jerseys.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

While U.S. personnel participated in Northern Viking, the American military presence was smaller than in previous exercises.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 6, 2026

As he stepped toward the seated council, the former Minnesota Viking was arrested by police and carried away, to cheers from supporters.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

In the meantime, a temporary exhibition displays highlights of Viking Age archaeological finds at the Museum of Cultural History.

From Science Daily ● Sep. 23, 2026

Enormous efforts were made to build the Viking microbiology experiments and test them with a variety of microbes.

From "Cosmos" by Carl Sagan

And no one among that afternoon’s merry band of Vikings has fully recovered since.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

Early in the Minnesota Vikings’ 15-10 victory over the Miami Dolphins, Vikings linebacker Eric Wilson appeared to be shoved into Hill, who was knocked to the ground.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 6, 2026

The team had also signed Cousins, who played for the Minnesota Vikings when Kubiak was an assistant there, to keep the seat warm for Mendoza.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 2, 2026

Few expected the Minnesota Vikings to be 3-0, though.

From BBC ● Sep. 28, 2026

The first Europeans known to have reached the Americas were the Vikings, who appeared off eastern Canada in the tenth century.

From "1491" by Charles C. Mann