Make Your Point > Archived Issues > MARTYR

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pronounce MARTYR: Say it "MAR dur." To hear it, click here. connect this word to others: A martyr is a person who dies for what they believe in. So is a "devil's martyr"--someone who believed in something evil or deeply wrong, then died for that cause. What about a devil's advocate? What does that person do? If you're not sure, give the word advocate a click. definition: Our word "martyr" traces back through Old English and Latin to Greek, and it might literally mean "witness." For many centuries in English, "martyr" has meant "a person who believes so strongly in their Christian religion that they are killed--willingly--because they'd rather die than say they don't believe anymore." We still use that meaning today. But we also use a looser, more general meaning: a martyr is someone who suffers deeply because of their strong belief in something (or their strong devotion to something). grammatical bits: Part of speech: Noun, the countable kind: "They made him a martyr;" "The book depicts saints and martyrs." Other forms:  The plural is "martyrs." "Martyrdom" is the noun for the idea. It's the act or process of suffering or dying for your beliefs. "Martyr" is also a verb. To martyr someone is to kill them for their beliefs. Or, more loosely, to martyr someone is to punish them or make them suffer because of what they believe in. Those people are then "martyred."  Lastly, you might bump into some hyphenated forms. We've got knight-martyrs, hero-martyrs, anti-martyrs, etc. And pseudomartyrs: people pretending to be martyrs. how to use it: The word "martyr" is common and formal. It has a religious tone. To refer to someone as a martyr is to suggest that they're extremely heroic and deeply principled, with a faith that can't be shaken even by pain or death. In spite of that strong religious tone--maybe even because of it--the word "martyr" often gets used for humor and exaggeration. You might talk about people becoming martyrs, or about people being martyrs to their beliefs. Or, talk about something that martyrs someone, or turns someone into a martyr. Or, talk about a person playing the martyr, or acting like a martyr. examples: "Lancelot was always a martyr to his feelings, never any good at disguising them."    — T. H. White, The Once and Future King, 1958 "[Harriet] saw that The Boy with the Purple Socks wore a sign around his neck which said: ASK TO BE TOLD THE LEGEND OF THE PURPLE SOCKS. 10 CENTS... Harriet opened her notebook: 'Well that's not my fault. I never told him to wear or not wear purple socks. He should have kept on wearing purple socks. Some people act like a martyr at the drop of a hat.'"    — Louise Fitzhugh, Harriet the Spy, 1964 "'You!' he said over the top of his stiffened index finger. 'I want you to go to the back of the room and turn around so I don't have to look at you. I just can't stand looking at your face right now... Go to the back or I will throw you out of my room, Mr. Hernandez!' This was a regular occurrence in Mr. Nossik's classroom. The old tight-buttoned fool never realized he was only making Cade out to be a bigger, more martyred hero in the hearts of his classmates."    — Andrew Smith, 100 Sideways Miles, 2014 has this page helped you understand "martyr"? Awesome, I'm glad it helped! Thanks for letting me know! If you have any questions about this word, please message me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. study it: Explain the meaning of "martyr" without saying "victim" or "someone who suffers for sticking to their principles." try it out: Consider how, in 1962, Nelson Mandela was arrested for trying to overthrow his oppressive government. He was standing trial, waiting to see if he'd be facing life in prison or a death sentence. In his autobiography, he wrote: "I was prepared to die secure in the knowledge that my death would be an inspiration to the cause for which I was giving my life. My death — our deaths — would not be in vain; if anything we might serve the cause greater in death as martyrs than we ever could in life." Talk about what he means. Why was he willing to become a martyr? How did he think this martyrdom would benefit his society? If you like, use this space to write. (To save your work, copy and paste it into an email or a document.) before you review, play: Try to spend 20 seconds or more on the game below. Don’t skip straight to the review—first, let your working memory empty out. Our game this month is "Clues in Cobbled Haikus." Check out the haiku, cobbled together from the work of a famous writer, and see if you can identify the term it's suggesting.  Try this one today: Cobbled from the work of Tim Rice, the haiku below suggests which of the following terms: animadversion, anima mundi, or remunerate?    Circle, moves us all.    Despair and hope, faith and love,    Find our place. Circle. To see the answer, scroll all the way down. review this word: 1. A near opposite of a MARTYR is A. a TRAITOR. B. a PESSIMIST. C. a FORTUNE-TELLER. 2. In the book Catching Fire, Katniss thinks, "They can turn me into some kind of martyr for _____... and it will do more to _____ people than anything I could do if I was living." A. the kids .. teach B. the cause .. rally C. their amusement .. entertain Answers to the review questions: 1. A 2. B Answer to the game question: The cobbled haiku suggests the term anima mundi. a final word: I hope you're enjoying Make Your Point. It's made with love. I'm Liesl Johnson, a reading and writing tutor on a mission to explore, illuminate, and celebrate words. From my blog: On vocabulary...       36 ways to study words.       Why we forget words, & how to remember them.       How to use sophisticated words without being awkward. On writing...       How to improve any sentence.       How to motivate our kids to write.       How to stop procrastinating and start writing.       How to bulk up your writing when you have to meet a word count. From my heart: a profound thanks to the generous patrons, donors, and sponsors that make it possible for me to write these emails. If you'd like to be a patron or a donor, please click here. If you'd like to be a sponsor and include your ad in an issue, please contact me at Liesl@HiloTutor.com. A disclaimer: When I write definitions, I use plain language and stick to the words' common, useful applications. If you're interested in authoritative and multiple definitions of words, I encourage you to check a dictionary. Also, because I'm American, I stick to American English when I share words' meanings, usage, and pronunciations; these elements sometimes vary across world Englishes.