PIONEERS Synonyms: 72 Similar and Opposite Words

pioneers 1 of 2

noun

plural of pioneer

as in settlers

a person who settles in a new region the hardships that the pioneers endured while taming the wilderness

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

pioneers

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of pioneer

as in founds

to be responsible for the creation and early operation or use of he single-handedly pioneered the university's institute for medical research

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 pioneers

Noun

But beyond icon status, Moncler praises its three leading ladies as pioneers. — Chris Gardner, HollywoodReporter, 16 Oct. 2026 Reps from pioneers such as ReelShort were in town pressing the flesh, while a global microdrama leaders’ summit brought together the likes of COL Group, Roseberry, RJ RisingJoy and NetShort. — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026 And back in the heyday of Fred Bear and other pioneers of modern bowhunting, climbing a tree to hunt from a stand was hardly a common practice. — Colin Moore, Outdoor Life, 15 Oct. 2026 Those younger pioneers were far more likely to use AI in their ventures. — Yan Wu, Washington Post, 13 Oct. 2026 New Atlas noted at the time that Samsung was following the path already established by pioneers such as Oura, but its arrival was a clear sign that smart rings were no longer just an experimental niche. — New Atlas, 2 Oct. 2026 Industry pioneers such as SpaceX’s Starlink have developed optical inter-satellite links for defense and commercial constellations, deploying large numbers of laser terminals across Starlink and Starshield. — Rohit Jha, Forbes.com, 1 Oct. 2026 State historian Doane Robinson wanted to create a monument to the Old West, featuring both pioneers and Native leaders, to attract tourists. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Sep. 2026 Thanks to the modern Artemis Missions, mankind is headed back to the Moon in the next few years, but for their annual Space Game uniforms, the UCF Knights are throwing it back to the pioneers who got us there in the first place. — Matt Reigle Outkick, FOXNews.com, 29 Sep. 2026

Verb

This year’s Veteran Era Category, which honors artists that came to musical prominence before 1980, was awarded to bluegrass and folk music pioneers The Stanley Brothers, Ralph and Carter Stanley. — Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 20 Mar. 2026 Geese owes an attitudinal debt to the punk pioneers the Stooges. — Amanda Petrusich, New Yorker, 12 Dec. 2025 HackQuest pioneers this approach by creating comprehensive developer profiles on the blockchain. — Douglas B. Laney, Forbes.com, 30 Aug. 2025 DiLoCoX pioneers a number of novel techniques, including pipeline parallelism, adaptive gradient compression, one-step-delay communication overlaps and local training, to create a decentralized AI training environment that scales to unprecedented heights. — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 22 Aug. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for pioneers

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
For decades, Jewish settlers put up fences to protect themselves from the active threat of Palestinian terrorism.

— Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 11 Oct. 2026

Definition of settlers

Noun

The original model for the kind of adversarial speech the First Amendment aims to protect, McGrane said, was the speech American colonists used against the British.

— Sarah Cutler, Idaho Statesman, 15 Oct. 2026
The animals reached Spain during the Roman Empire and were later brought to what is now Mexico by Spanish colonists in the 1500s.

— Clara Harter, Los Angeles Times, 6 Oct. 2026

Definition of colonists

Verb

Sometimes, the administration institutes a cap on GPU export numbers to firms like Alibaba.

— John Werner, Forbes.com, 29 Aug. 2026
Imagine, for example, a bot tasked with reducing the federal deficit that institutes an elaborate and hard-to-detect accounting gimmick, or a customer-service agent that issues absurd discounts in pursuit of customer-satisfaction ratings.

— Matteo Wong, The Atlantic, 22 July 2026

Definition of institutes

Verb

The third book, A Court of Wings and Ruin, essentially wraps up Feyre’s story and establishes the storylines and characters that will propel the series forward.

— Anna Moeslein, Glamour, 17 Oct. 2026
The constitutional amendment establishes a 40-hour weekly limit and two rest days without reducing pay.

— Mauricio Savarese, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of establishes

Verb

Citi initiates Mobileye as buy Citi said the company is best positioned for autonomous driving.

— Michael Bloom, CNBC, 16 Oct. 2026
Add to that Safe Return™ Emergency Autoland, where, if the pilot was incapacitated, a touch of a big red button initiates a safe, autonomous landing.

— Robb Report Studio, Robb Report, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of initiates

Verb

The duo launches alongside a tapered blending brush designed for gentle, precise application on the delicate skin under your eyes.

— Maggie Ryan, Flow Space, 16 Oct. 2026
Sober Companion launches on BBC Sounds next month, joining a raft of splashy audio dramas including Richard Curtis’ Greatest Living Writer starring Bill Nighy.

— Max Goldbart, Deadline, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of launches

Browse Nearby Words

pioneering

pioneers

pious

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Pioneers.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pioneers. Accessed 22 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of pioneers

noun

verb

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

jilt

Popular in Grammar & Usage

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

'Can' vs. 'May'

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

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

Popular in Wordplay

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

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

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World

Popular

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

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

Games & Quizzes