Meaning & use
warrior
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Meanings
nouncountableliterary
A fighter, especially one from a past age or a culture that honors battle skills.
Grammar: Often found in history and fantasy; modern armies usually say soldier.
Patterns
- a warrior of something
The museum displays the armor of a medieval warrior.
Each warrior carried a spear and a wooden shield.
Legends tell of a warrior who defended the mountain pass alone.
nouncountablefigurative
A person who shows great courage and determination in a struggle or cause.
Grammar: Used figuratively, often with another noun: a climate warrior, a weekend warrior.
Patterns
- a warrior for something
She was a tireless warrior for children's education.
He called his late mother a warrior after her long illness.
The nurse was a true warrior throughout the crisis.
Word forms
| plural | warriors |
|---|
Common combinations
- fierce warrior
- The fierce warrior led the charge.
- warrior spirit
- Her warrior spirit carried her through the marathon.
- weekend warrior
- The weekend warrior pulled a muscle at the park.
- warrior queen
- Stories about the warrior queen still inspire films.
- warrior culture
- The island had a proud warrior culture.
Synonyms and how they differ
- soldier
- Soldier refers to a member of a modern or organized army, while warrior suggests a more heroic or ancient fighter.
- fighter
- Fighter is a plain, everyday word that can describe anyone who fights, with less of the epic tone of warrior.
- combatant
- Combatant is a neutral, formal term for someone taking part in a conflict.
- champion
- Champion stresses defending or winning for a cause or a title, not necessarily battle.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: warrior or worrier?
warrior vs worrier
A worrier is someone who worries a lot, while a warrior is a fighter; the sounds are close in some accents.
Practice
In which sentence is warrior used figuratively?
Choose one answer.
Only option 2 calls a real person a warrior to praise her courage. The others describe actual fighters.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “warrior”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.