crusader

[ kroo-seyd-er ]

noun

1. Often Crusader. a participant in any of the crusades or military expeditions undertaken with papal sanction by the Christians of Europe in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries in an effort to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims:

   Orders of monks who were also knights became the "storm troops" of the Christian crusaders.

2. a participant in any vigorous movement for the defense or advancement of an idea, cause, etc.:

   Nepal's most prominent crusader for equal rights for sexual minorities was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

Word History and Origins

Origin of crusader¹

crusade ( def ) + -er ¹( def )

Example Sentences

Murray's selection comes just days after he scored his first try for Scarlets, who he joined in the summer from Crusaders in New Zealand.

From BBC

Burgess Meredith played the character in the 1960s “Batman” series, which starred Adam West as a campier iteration of the Caped Crusader.

From Los Angeles Times

To a green young Russian agent, he tells with sinister admiration the story of his nemesis the Crusader — also the name of the adoring Reagan biography the film draws from.

From Los Angeles Times

In 2021, the High Court ruled that a snail farm tenancy deal between a landlord in Leeds and the management company Crusader, where Mr Ball was a director, was a "sham".

From BBC

“Batman: Caped Crusader” mixes the dark and the bright by going back to basics, when Batman was a simple vigilante detective regulating an unruly big city.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• agitator
• campaigner
• zealot