terrorist

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noun

ter·​ror·​ist ˈter-ər-ist 

plural terrorists

: an advocate or practitioner of terrorism as a means of coercion

Opposition still runs high to the idea of releasing or bringing into U.S. prisons dozens of men widely considered dangerous terrorists even if many are not.

Less than three weeks before the Winter Olympics are set to begin in the Russian city of Sochi, police there have begun hunting for suspected terrorists allegedly plotting attacks.

—Time

terrorist

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adjective

: or, relating to, or characteristic of terrorists or terrorism : practicing or involving violent acts of terror

a terrorist organization

The consequences of the U.S. response to the terrorist attacks of September 2001 will ramify for decades.

—Joe Klein

There is no margin for error when a real terrorist threat is present and the safety of the public, and the first responders, is in jeopardy.

—Gary J. Laughlin

Examples of terrorist in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Last year, the White House formally designated the Jalisco cartel as a foreign terrorist group. —Kate Linthicum, Los Angeles Times, 23 Feb. 2026

The administration had already canceled the entire aid packages of two nations, Afghanistan and Yemen, where the State Department said terrorists were diverting resources. —Hana Kiros, The Atlantic, 22 Feb. 2026

Adjective

And even though the suspect is accused of plotting the hotel attack and a second terrorist strike, and of personally killing five people in a third attack, the first-degree murder law he’s charged under also covers accidental, presumably non-violent deaths. —John Annese, Mercury News, 17 Feb. 2026

Israel has conducted numerous military and police operations in the West Bank in recent years, accusing Hamas and other terrorist groups of operating in the territory and using it as a platform from which to launch attacks on Israel. —CBS News, 16 Feb. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1794, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1795, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing terrorist

• anti-terrorist