as in missioner
a person who is sent especially to a foreign country to do religious work (such as converting people to the religion or ministering to the sick)
The missionaries sent to the island were ultimately unsuccessful in converting the native residents.
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as in apostolic
relating to missionaries or their work
The church organizes missionary trips to a variety of countries.
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of missionary
Joanne M. Pierce, The Conversation, 27 May 2025
Isidor testified that Joly told him to let the sick missionaries go.
—Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 16 May 2025
Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, 21 May 2025
Pope Leo was born in Chicago and gained missionary experience in Peru before serving as the bishop of the city of Chiclayo.
—Abigail Adams, People.com, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for missionary
Noun
Based on his years as a missionary and as provincial of the entire order worldwide, Leo XIV draws on the rich interpersonal tradition of the Order of St. Augustine.
—Joanne M. Pierce, The Conversation, 27 May 2025
Isidor testified that Joly told him to let the sick missionaries go.
—Shirsho Dasgupta, Miami Herald, 16 May 2025
Adjective
Along with the trickling river and a dam that dates to the early Spanish missionary days, the landscape includes 65 miles of trails on more than 8,000 acres of rugged mountains, hills and valleys.
—Christopher Reynolds, Los Angeles Times, 21 May 2025
Pope Leo was born in Chicago and gained missionary experience in Peru before serving as the bishop of the city of Chiclayo.
—Abigail Adams, People.com, 14 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for missionary
Recent Examples of Synonyms for missionary
Noun
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Kelley Hudlow, missioner for clergy formation for the diocese, told NBC affiliate WVTM of Birmingham soon after the shooting that church leaders were trying to learn more.—
Phil Helsel,
NBC News,
17 June 2022
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Eby will continue to serve as outreach missioner at the Church of the Nativity and as priest-in-charge at St. Timothy’s Church in Athens.—
al,
al,
1 Dec. 2020
Adjective
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The Friday event, which took place inside the Vatican’s apostolic palace, included a roundtable discussion on AI ethics and governance.—
CNN.com,
Mercury News,
20 June 2025
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View Comments The Friday event, which took place inside the Vatican’s apostolic palace, included a roundtable discussion on AI ethics and governance.—
Clare Duffy,
CNN Money,
20 June 2025
Noun
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Adding to the Israeli public pressure to end the war is the large number of soldiers, 20, killed in Gaza in the past month alone.—
James Hider,
NPR,
7 July 2025
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An ensemble of Army soldiers fired up the fife and drums on board the USS Constitution on Monday to provide a patriotic flair to the summer heat.—
Boston Herald staff,
Boston Herald,
7 July 2025
Adjective
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But in spite of this discrimination, religious dissent grew rapidly in the mid-18th century, led by evangelical Presbyterians and Baptists.—
Time,
Time,
10 July 2025
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Monday’s filing was the product of a lawsuit filed in Texas in September 2024 on behalf of the National Religious Broadcasters, an international association of evangelical Christian communicators, as well as Intercessors for America, a conservative Christian prayer advocacy group.—
Angele Latham,
The Tennessean,
9 July 2025
Noun
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And, over time, fewer new European priests arrived in Kongo, making translation less necessary.—
Livia Gershon,
JSTOR Daily,
12 July 2025
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One particular enemy of Gauguin’s was Bishop Martin, a Catholic priest on Hiva Oa who did his best to stomp out local custom, forbidding tattooing, Polynesian dancing, and the customary practice of polyandry.—
Alexandra Schwartz,
New Yorker,
11 July 2025
Noun
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Eric-the-junkie had intoned to his even-then-passé parents, old-schoolers bent on building systems that would stick, that the monks were celebrating the ephemeral beauty of physical existence.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 July 2025
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Last month, in a rare meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, the Tibetan monk reaffirmed his allegiance to the rule of the Communist Party and pledged to make his religion more Chinese – a tenet of Xi’s policy on religion.—
Simone McCarthy,
CNN Money,
3 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Missionary.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/missionary. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
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