suitor

noun

suit·​or ˈsü-tər 

1

: one that petitions or entreats

2

: a party to a suit at law

3

: one who courts a woman or seeks to marry her

4

: one who seeks to take over a business

Synonyms

• gallant
• swain
• wooer

Examples of suitor in a Sentence

He was her most persistent suitor, and she eventually agreed to marry him.

An unwanted suitor is buying up the company's stock.

Recent Examples on the Web

Behind the scenes, administration officials have been in talks with multiple suitors. —Esat Dedezade, Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025

Last summer, though, the only suitor willing to pay that price was in Saudi Arabia. —Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025

Amazon was among the suitors that submitted a bid on Wednesday, according to Reuters and the New York Times. —Nicole Fallert, USA Today, 3 Apr. 2025

The series Younger focuses on Liza’s potential suitors — from Josh to Charles to David (her cheating ex-husband) and many potentials in between (no shade intended!). —Lisa Stardust, People.com, 31 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English sutour, suytour, follower, petitioner, from Anglo-French siuter, suytour, from Latin secutor follower, from sequi to follow — more at sue

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for suitor

• neuter
• pewter
• router
• scooter
• shooter
• tutor
• commuter
• computer
• polluter
• recruiter
• microcomputer
• minicomputer

Kids Definition

suitor

noun

suit·​or ˈsüt-ər 

1

: one that petitions or pleads

2

: a party to a suit at law

3

: a man who courts a woman or seeks to marry her

Legal Definition

suitor

noun

suit·​or ˈsü-tər 

1

: a party to a suit

2

: one that seeks to take over a business

approved the merger before the suitor obtained a 10% stake

—Wall Street Journal