pilgrim
UK[ˈpɪlɡrɪm]US[ˈpɪlɡrɪm]
n
A person who journeys to a sacred place for religious reasons.
n
A person who travels to a place associated with someone or something they deeply respect.
Etymology
The word 'pilgrim' traces a journey from the Latin 'peregrinus', meaning a foreigner or one who travels abroad. This term, rooted in the concept of crossing land ('per- ager'), was adopted into Christian Latin to specifically denote a traveler to holy sites, carrying spiritual significance. Through Old French 'pelegrin', it entered Middle English, gradually shedding its general sense of 'stranger' to focus exclusively on the religious or reverential journey. Thus, the modern 'pilgrim' embodies a traveler whose destination is sacred, transforming the ancient idea of geographical passage into a metaphor for spiritual quest.
Analysis
The word 'pilgrim' is a simplex loanword. It entered English from Old French 'pelegrin', which derived from Late Latin 'pelegrinus', a variant of Latin 'peregrinus' meaning 'foreigner, traveler'. The Latin term itself is built from 'pereger' ('being abroad'), from 'per-' ('through') + 'ager' ('land, field'), but these components are not directly recoverable from the modern English spelling 'pilgrim'.
Examples
Every year, millions of pilgrims visit Mecca for the Hajj.
She considered herself a pilgrim in search of artistic truth.
The Pilgrims who sailed on the Mayflower sought religious freedom in the New World.