Link Centre Dictionary

crusade

cru·sade

UK/kɹuːˈseɪd/ US/kɹuˈseɪd/ fairly common
noun (2) verb (2)

noun

1.

a series of actions advancing a principle or tending toward a particular end

  • “he supported populist campaigns”
  • “they worked in the cause of world peace”
  • “the team was ready for a drive toward the pennant”
  • “the movement to end slavery”
  • “contributed to the war effort”
Synonyms
2.

any of the more or less continuous military expeditions in the 11th to 13th centuries when Christian powers of Europe tried to recapture the Holy Land from the Muslims

verb

1.

exert oneself continuously, vigorously, or obtrusively to gain an end or engage in a crusade for a certain cause or person; be an advocate for

  • “The liberal party pushed for reforms”
  • “She is crusading for women”
  • “;”
Synonyms
2.

go on a crusade; fight a holy war

Origin

From French croisade, introduced into English (in the French spelling) by 1575. The modern spelling emerges c. 1760,. Middle French croisade is introduced in the 15th century, based on Spanish cruzada (late 14th century) and Old Occitan crozada (early 13th century), both reflecting Medieval Latin cruciāta, cruxiata, the feminine singular of the adjective cruciātus used as an abstract noun. Adjectival cruciātus originally meant "tormented; crucified", but from the 12th century crucesignatus was also used for "marked with a cross; making the sign of the cross" and eventually "taking the cross" in the sense of "going on a crusade". Old Occitan crozada is used in the sense "[the Albigensian] crusade" in the Song of the Albigensian crusade, written c. 1213. From vernacular usage, Middle Latin cruciāta also comes to be used in the sense "crusade" from about 1270.

Phrases

  • crusade bull
  • holy war

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

Related verbs

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.