colonist

noun

col·​o·​nist ˈkä-lə-nist 

plural colonists

see usage paragraph below

: a member or inhabitant of a colony (see colony sense 1)

the Jamestown/Plymouth colonists

especially : a person who migrates to and settles in a foreign area as part of a colony

Honeybees aren't native to North America; early colonists brought them over from Europe to provide honey and beeswax.

—Paige Embry

Usage of Colonist and Colonizer

Colonist and colonizer both have meanings closely tied to the word colonialism in its use referring to domination of a foreign people or area. Colonist, which comes directly from the noun colony, is the more common—and usually more neutral—term. Colonizer, which comes from the verb colonize, is used especially in contexts in which the exploitative nature of colonialism is being discussed or evoked; in phrases like "colonizer mindset/mentality" it implies a benefit from or even active participation in that exploitation.

Synonyms

• colonial
• colonizer
• frontiersman
• homesteader
• pioneer
• settler

Examples of colonist in a Sentence

British colonists settled the area in the 18th century.

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

Recent Examples on the Web

Still, many colonists had not seriously considered separating from the mother country—until a history-making pamphlet was published in the City of Brotherly Love on January 10, 1776. —Sonja Anderson, Smithsonian Magazine, 10 Jan. 2025

Recommended for European travelers and colonists heading to the East in the late 1800s, quinine was initially added to various alcoholic beverages to mask its bitterness. —Alexandra Emanuelli, Southern Living, 23 Dec. 2024

While plot details around the mystery remain undisclosed, the film’s title has historical significance for being the only complete word found by European visitors to Roanoke Island, who arrived on site to discover that more than 100 English colonists had disappeared to an unknown fate. —J. Kim Murphy, Variety, 27 Nov. 2024

The new origin story of the grave marker highlights Jamestown’s position in global transatlantic trade and sheds light on the early colonists’ burial procedures, experts said. —Taylor Nicioli, CNN, 31 Oct. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1701, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

colonist

noun

col·​o·​nist ˈkäl-ə-nəst 

1

: a person who lives in a colony

2

: a person who takes part in founding a colony