MARTYR Synonyms: 109 Similar and Opposite Words

martyr 1 of 2

verb

Definition of martyr

as in to attack

to kill (someone) for refusing to give up a belief or cause

—usually used as (be) martyred He was martyred for his religious beliefs.

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

martyr

2 of 2

noun

as in sacrifice

Related Words

Dissimilar Words

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 martyr

Verb

Porter need not be martyred like Good and Pretti. — Leonard Greene, New York Daily News, 7 Mar. 2026 Iran, with its sophisticated military, near-nuclear capability, proxy networks spanning the region and a regime now martyred by foreign attack, will likely not be the exception. — Farah N. Jan, The Conversation, 2 Mar. 2026

Noun

Today, millions more people know about his stance on this issue and, thanks to Kraft, many see him as a martyr for a cause. — Sean Woods, Rolling Stone, 16 Sep. 2026 The martyr complex is ingrained in Iranian DNA, but despite her troubled life, Googoosh doesn’t lean into it. — Lily Moayeri, SPIN, 16 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for martyr

Recent Examples of Synonyms for martyr

Verb

Protesters, many of whom have been seen carrying Palestinian flags, have set fire to historic buildings and attacked civilians.

— Timothy Nerozzi, The Washington Examiner, 20 Oct. 2026
Electrons can then leak out of the chain, bonding with oxygen in the wrong parts of the mitochondria to form highly reactive free radicals that attack and deform neighboring molecules.

— Rowan Jacobsen, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026

Definition of attack

Noun

On the one hand, there are the flow-state breakthroughs, the gratification of acclaim, the rush of connecting with an audience; on the other, the brutal sacrifices of time, money, and stability.

— Dash Lewis, Pitchfork, 15 Oct. 2026
For Kotzmacher, the recognition acknowledges sacrifices that extend beyond the softball field.

— Jackson Thompson OutKick, FOXNews.com, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of sacrifice

Verb

Hundreds of thousands of women were tried, tortured, and executed for witchcraft in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 14 Oct. 2026
According to Bilal and his brother Judy, neither Ahmed nor anyone else in his family had ever been arrested or tortured by the regime.

— Ben Taub, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of torture

Noun

The selling in recent days, however, has intensified on worries about the AI trade, making the likes of Micron among our biggest losers week-to-date and defensives such as Cardinal Health among our biggest weekly winners.

— Alexa LoMonaco, CNBC, 15 Oct. 2026
Progress in the competition awaits the winner, exit for the loser.

— Lars Brandle, Billboard, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of loser

Verb

Stylistically, this encyclopedic catch-all of genres readily segues from sermons and soliloquies to thrilling action sequences and anguished cris de coeur.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 July 2026
His effort to have (ahem) his cake and eat it too regarding Iran — acting reportedly anguished behind closed doors but publicly supportive of the administration — speaks to a level of calculation that makes people uncomfortable.

— Chris Stirewalt, The Hill, 23 June 2026

Definition of anguish

Verb

Those governments provide assurances that people won’t be persecuted or tortured, federal attorneys said.

— Lindsay Whitehurst, Los Angeles Times, 29 Sep. 2026
Also, some immigration cases involve people seeking asylum because they are being persecuted by a foreign government and releasing a person’s full name could be considered sensitive or even dangerous.

— Laura Tillman, Hartford Courant, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of persecute

Verb

Speculation and conspiracy theories have plagued Kirk’s death, fueled even by public figures such as Candace Owens, a longtime friend of Kirk, who has been outspoken about her belief that his death was orchestrated in an elaborate plot.

— Mackenzie Chase, The Washington Examiner, 14 Oct. 2026
Hoover’s replacement has thus far been a miss, and the problem that plagued this program in losses in each of the last two years has not changed.

— Mac Engel October 14, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 14 Oct. 2026

Definition of plague

Browse Nearby Words

marts

martyr

martyrdom

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

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

Copy Citation

Synonyms of martyr

verb

noun

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster on martyr

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

compunction

Popular in Grammar & Usage

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

The Exceptions of '-s' and '-es' Plurals

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Popular in Wordplay

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Bad Endings and Rough Situations

Did 'orange' the fruit or the color come first?

Popular

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

16 Food Words Recently Added to the Dictionary

The Real Origin of 'Supercalifragilistic'

Games & Quizzes