pilgrim

IPA/ˈpɪl.ɡrɪm/
KK[pˈɪlɡrəm]IPA/ˈpɪl.ɡrɪm/

pilgrim — noun

  • pilgrimsingular
  • pilgrimsplural

1. someone who makes a long journey to a place regarded as holy in order to worship

1.nounB2
Definition

someone who makes a long journey to a place regarded as holy in order to worship or show religious devotion

Example

Thousands of pilgrims walked for days to reach the shrine at Lourdes.

pilgrims + walked to shrine

Ayesha joined the pilgrims climbing the stone steps to the temple.

pilgrims + to temple

Common collocations
  • pilgrim shrine
  • pilgrim route
  • pilgrim hostel
  • pilgrim festival
  • groups of pilgrims
Synonyms
  • devotee

    emphasizes strong religious commitment, but not necessarily the journey itself

  • worshipper

    focuses on prayer or religious practice and may stay in one place

  • traveler

    much broader and does not suggest a sacred purpose

Grammar Patterns

pilgrim to + holy place

[number] pilgrims + travel verb

Usage Note

The destination in this sense is a shrine, temple, tomb, or another place treated as holy. The word emphasizes the religious purpose of the journey, not ordinary travel or sightseeing.

Common Mistakes

Our trip to Lourdes was a pilgrim.
Our trip to Lourdes was a pilgrimage.
Pilgrim names the person, while pilgrimage names the journey.

2. someone who travels to a well-known place because it has deep personal meaning o

2.nounC1
Definition

someone who travels to a well-known place because it has deep personal meaning or is closely tied to someone they admire

Example

Christopher felt like a pilgrim when he finally reached Shakespeare's house.

feel like a pilgrim

Film pilgrims queued outside the old cinema where the director once worked.

modifier + pilgrims

Common collocations
  • literary pilgrim
  • music pilgrim
  • pilgrim to Graceland
  • pilgrim to a memorial
  • pilgrim visit
Synonyms
  • admirer

    describes the feeling of respect or love, but not the journey

  • fan

    more casual and centered on enthusiasm for a performer, team, or writer

  • tourist

    suggests sightseeing or leisure rather than emotional or symbolic meaning

  • visitor

    neutral word that does not imply devotion or special meaning

Grammar Patterns

pilgrim to + famous place

feel like a pilgrim

Usage Note

This figurative sense often appears when admirers visit a writer's home, a musician's hometown, a stadium, or another place that feels emotionally important. It commonly appears with to + place.

Common Mistakes

Our trip to Graceland was a pilgrim.
Our trip to Graceland was a pilgrimage.
Pilgrim is the visitor; pilgrimage is the visit.

pilgrim — noun

  • pilgrimsingular
  • pilgrimsplural

1. someone from the English group that crossed the Atlantic on the Mayflower and fo

1.nounC1
Definition

someone from the English group that crossed the Atlantic on the Mayflower and founded Plymouth Colony in 1620

Example

Schoolchildren dressed as Pilgrims during the Thanksgiving play at Lincoln Elementary.

capitalized Pilgrims in US history

The museum displayed a worn Bible that belonged to a Pilgrim family.

Pilgrim family

Common collocations
  • Pilgrim Fathers
  • Pilgrim family
  • Pilgrim settlement
  • Pilgrim story
  • the Pilgrims
Synonyms
  • colonist

    broader term for a person who settles in a colony; not limited to the Mayflower group

  • settler

    general word for someone who moves to live in a new place

Grammar Patterns

the Pilgrims

a Pilgrim family

Pilgrim + noun

Usage Note

This sense is mainly used in US history and is usually written with a capital letter: Pilgrim. It refers specifically to the Mayflower settlers connected with Plymouth, not to every early colonist in North America.

Common Mistakes

Every early settler in America was a Pilgrim.
Only the Mayflower group at Plymouth are called the Pilgrims.
This historical label names one specific group, not all colonists.

Word family

  • pilgrimage
    nounB2
  • pilgrimage
    verbC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Pilgrim is narrower than tourist and visitor because it suggests a journey made for a special purpose, often religious. A worshipper prays or takes part in religious acts, but a worshipper does not have to travel anywhere. A devotee is deeply loyal to a faith, cause, or admired person; the word describes commitment more than movement. Tourist usually points to leisure, sightseeing, and comfort rather than devotion. Visitor is the most neutral choice and simply means someone who comes to a place for a short time. If someone walks to a shrine to pray, pilgrim fits best. If someone flies to Rome mainly to look at old buildings, tourist is more natural unless faith is the main reason for the trip.

tourist ↗visitor ↗worshipper ↗devotee ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • pilgrim route
  • pilgrim trail
  • pilgrim town
  • pilgrim group

Phrases

  • travel as a pilgrim
  • join other pilgrims
  • set out as a pilgrim

Prepositions

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishEnglish

Pilgrim came into English through Old French from Latin peregrinus, a word for someone who was away from home or in a foreign land. Because journeys to sacred places were long trips into unfamiliar territory, English gradually used the word especially for a person traveling for religious devotion. Later, the meaning widened again, so it can also describe someone who visits a place of deep personal importance, such as a writer's home or a famous stadium.

First known use

13th century

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1