Synonyms of colonist

colonist

noun

ˈkä-lə-nist 

as in settler

a person who settles in a new region

over time the colonists began to sense that they were becoming a people unto themselves

Synonyms & Similar Words

• settler
• pioneer
• colonial
• colonizer
• frontiersman
• homesteader
• explorer
• pathfinder
• woodsman
• mountain man
• bushranger
• trailblazer

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of colonist

The relationship between colonists and Native Americans was more complex than just a story of conflict as America established itself during and after the Revolution. — Scott Baldauf, Christian Science Monitor, 17 Sep. 2026

Japan regained sovereignty over the island in the 1970s, but the American military still has a heavy presence there, continuing tensions between locals and the armed colonists surrounding them. — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2026

Robert had made a bunch of money in the importing business and was a loyalist to the king; Mary, perhaps without her husband’s knowledge, supported the colonist rebels. — Christopher Bonanos, Curbed, 2 Sep. 2026

What happened to the colonists remains unknown, but archaeological finds—including otherwise anachronistic English artifacts on Hatteras Island—give some support to White’s theory that at least some of the colonists relocated willingly. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 14 Aug. 2026