settler

noun

set·​tler ˈse-tᵊl-ər 

ˈset-lər

1

: one that settles something

a settler of disputes

2

: someone who settles in a new region or colony

the first settlers of New England

Synonyms

• colonial
• colonist
• colonizer
• frontiersman
• homesteader
• pioneer

Examples of settler in a Sentence

settlers learning to live in peace with the natives

in 1889 Jane Addams, in an effort to provide Chicago's latest wave of settlers with much-needed services, founded the city's first settlement house

Recent Examples on the Web

Archaeological finds of sturgeon remains support that early colonial settlers in North America, notably those who established Jamestown in the Chesapeake Bay area in 1607, also prized these fish. —Logan Kistler, The Conversation, 20 Mar. 2025

And far from reining Israel in, Trump has floated relocating Gaza’s population, abolished Biden’s sanctions regime targeting violent Israeli settlers, and sanctioned the International Criminal Court over its prosecution of Israel. —Yair Rosenberg, The Atlantic, 18 Mar. 2025

Israeli settlers have continued to attack the area since the film’s Oscar win on March 2. —Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 14 Mar. 2025

European settlers learned to collect it from Native Americans. —David Schechter, CBS News, 13 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1598, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing settler

• settler colonial
• settler colonialism
• settler-colonialist
• settler colony

Kids Definition

settler

noun

set·​tler ˈset-lər 

-ᵊl-ər

: a person who settles in a new region : colonist