immigrant
Americannoun
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a person who migrates to another country, usually for permanent residence.
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an organism found in a new habitat.
adjective
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of or relating to immigrants and immigration.
a department for immigrant affairs.
noun
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a person who comes to a country in order to settle there Compare emigrant
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( as modifier )
an immigrant community
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an animal or plant that lives or grows in a region to which it has recently migrated
Other Word Forms
- nonimmigrant noun
Etymology
Origin of immigrant
An Americanism first recorded in 1780–90; from Latin immigrant-, stem of immigrāns “moving into,” present participle of immigrāre “to move into”; equivalent to im- 1 + migrant
Explanation
The United States is a country of immigrants — people who come to one country from another country, in hopes of having a better life. An inscription on the base of the Statue of Liberty welcomes new immigrants: "Give me your tired, your poor, / Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free..." Don't confuse the words immigrant and emigrant. If you come to a country, you are an immigrant and you emigrate from somewhere else. Ireland has many emigrants to America; America has many immigrants from Ireland. If your parents were immigrants to the United States, but you were born here, you are a citizen automatically.
Vocabulary lists containing immigrant
Unit 2: Pivotal Words and Phrases
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The Industrial Revolution - Introductory
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Africa - Introductory
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
He has been contacted a few days earlier by a new customer, a recent immigrant from Pakistan.
From BBC • Apr. 16, 2026
“I know you know how to line dance” she said, drawing a line between Irish tradition and American country music culture, the latter shaped in part by Celtic immigrant music.
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 15, 2026
An immigrant from Colombia, he works as a civil engineer specializing in bridge construction, and was deemed to “perform services of exceptional merit and ability” by the federal government.
From Slate • Apr. 15, 2026
Restaurant trade groups have been pushing the White House and Congress to create a visa program for lower-skilled immigrant workers.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 12, 2026
On November 28, 1892, Patrick Eugene Joseph Prendergast, the mad Irish immigrant and Harrison supporter, selected one of his postal cards.
From "The Devil in the White City" by Erik Larson
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
