IMMIGRANT Synonyms: 51 Similar and Opposite Words

immigrant 1 of 2

noun

ˈi-mə-grənt

Definition of immigrant

as in migrant

one that leaves one place to settle in another America was founded by immigrants and they have been its lifeblood ever since

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

immigrant

2 of 2

adjective

as in expatriate

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of immigrant

Noun

Ramirez, 43, who is the child of two Guatemalan immigrants, shared her own fears. — Mikayla Price, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 Her philanthropic activities extended far beyond her own community to include Indigenous inmates, Chinese immigrants, and white laborers, along with countless other Angelenos. — Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026

Adjective

Gillespie said the president's immigration rhetoric could carry particular significance in a community where immigrant workers have contributed to the local economy. — Dan Raby, CBS News, 16 Oct. 2026 That music could only have been written by an immigrant kid that grew up in Hollywood that loved rock and heavy metal music. — Steve Appleford, SPIN, 15 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for immigrant

Recent Examples of Synonyms for immigrant

Noun

Angela, an undocumented migrant, knew many evangelicals in Brazil.

— Johanna Bard Richlin, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2026
Jude’s modern twist on Octave Mirbeau’s novel follows Gianina (Ana Dumitrașcu), a Romanian migrant working as a live-in housekeeper and nanny for a wealthy family in present-day Bordeaux.

— Katherine Brodsky, Variety, 16 Oct. 2026

Definition of migrant

Adjective

An expatriate resident of Riyadh told CNN their children were being schooled at home this week.

— Tim Lister, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026
This is a team assembled from immigration, diaspora, and expatriate ambition, coached by an outsider who can see what insiders missed.

— Michael Morris, Time, 1 July 2026

Definition of expatriate

Noun

Baksheng leaves behind a family and then creates a new one with other Teochew emigrants at an inn run by a feminist daughter, Zia Lamgi (Li Sitong) who dodges a revolving door of suitors.

— Randy Myers, Mercury News, 3 Sep. 2026
The decision could have broad implications for descendants of Italian emigrants, particularly in North and South America, where large Italian diaspora communities have ancestral ties to Italy.

— ABC News, ABC News, 29 July 2026

Definition of emigrant

Adjective

High energy costs, coupled with record exits of foreign investors from its capital markets due to risk aversion and the lack of artificial intelligence play, have kept the rupee under pressure.

— Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026
Majidi previously made Oscar history with Children of Heaven (1997), which became the first Iranian film nominated in the international category, then known as best foreign-language film.

— Patrick Brzeski, HollywoodReporter, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of foreign

Noun

Marschall’s initial assessment was that the tree’s life probably began before European settlers arrived in the region, at a time when the mountain was populated by autonomous Indigenous nations that later became part of the Creek Confederacy.

— M. R. O’Connor, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026
Meanwhile over 100 Palestinian communities have been displaced or erased by the settler violence and the ever-encroaching sheep.

— Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of settler

Adjective

Unfortunately, his doctor interprets all the screaming about an alien presence in Thomas’ head as a garden-variety psychotic breakdown, and remands him to a more secure facility.

— Tasha Robinson, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026
In particular, alien life may thrive in the light of these stars on planets that are slightly larger than Earth, known as super-Earths.

— Natalie Wolchover, New York Times, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of alien

Noun

The case centers on the Cuban government shooting down two Brothers to the Rescue flights, a civilian rescue group dedicated to saving refugees fleeing the authoritarian Castro regime — then run by Raul Castro’s older brother Fidel.

— Liv Caputo Herald, Miami Herald, 19 Oct. 2026
Trump has vastly expanded ICE to ramp up deportations of immigrants, refugees and asylum-seekers, and the agency was a major part of last year’s law-enforcement surge in the Chicago area known as Operation Midway Blitz.

— Daniel C. Vock, Chicago Tribune, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of refugee

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immethodical

immigrant

immigrants

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Style

“Immigrant.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/immigrant. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of immigrant

noun

adjective

Example Sentences

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