nomad

noun

no·​mad ˈnō-ˌmad How to pronounce nomad (audio)
1
: a member of a people who have no fixed residence but move from place to place usually seasonally and within a well-defined territory
For centuries nomads have shepherded goats, sheep, and cattle across the … semiarid grasslands …Discovery
2
: an individual who roams about
He lived like a nomad for a few years after college, never holding a job in one place for very long.
nomad adjective
nomadism noun

Examples of nomad in a Sentence

He lived like a nomad for a few years after college, never holding a job in one place for very long. after college she became quite the nomad, backpacking through Europe with no particular destination
Recent Examples on the Web Today, these pastoral nomads live mostly in the high mountains surrounding Barrancas del Cobre and still practice their traditional customs. Meagan Drillinger, Travel + Leisure, 11 Feb. 2024 These pastoral nomads would often travel long distances searching for green pastures and food for their livestock, which included goats, sheep, yaks and cattle, and survived through hunting and moving with the seasons. Laura Kiniry, Smithsonian Magazine, 9 Feb. 2024 The future tyrannical president of Panem is tasked with mentoring Lucy Gray, the female tribute from District 12 and a member of the Covey, a group of musical nomads. Jessica Wang, EW.com, 26 Sep. 2023 Whale sharks are global nomads, found in all tropical oceans. Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 8 Jan. 2024 But as long as these advances are considered signs of sophistication, nomads will come up short. Manvir Singh, The New Yorker, 25 Dec. 2023 Pastoral nomads, for example, raised and cared for herded animals. Emilie Le Beau Lucchesi, Discover Magazine, 2 Dec. 2023 The population grew fast, partly through a high birth rate but also because Saharan Arab nomads migrated to Darfur in search of land. Alex De Waal, Foreign Affairs, 18 Sep. 2023 The show follows a young Air nomad named Aang, the current Avatar who can bend all four elements and is tasked with maintaining harmony in the world. Los Angeles Times Staff, Los Angeles Times, 1 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'nomad.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

borrowed from Latin Nomades (singular Nomas), name given to various pastoral peoples, as in northern Africa or Scythia, borrowed from Greek nomádes "pastoral people who move from place to place seasonally," plural of nomad-, nomás "wanderer, shepherd," as adjective, "wandering, roaming," from nomḗ "pasturing of animals, pasture, herd" or nomós "pasture, feeding ground" (both o-ablaut derivatives of némein "to graze, pasture [animals]) + -ad-, -as, noun and adjective suffix denoting descent from or connection with — more at nimble

First Known Use

1579, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of nomad was in 1579

Dictionary Entries Near nomad

Cite this Entry

“Nomad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nomad. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

nomad

noun
no·​mad ˈnō-ˌmad How to pronounce nomad (audio)
1
: a member of a people that has no fixed home but wanders from place to place
2
: an individual who roams about without a goal or purpose
nomad adjective
or nomadic
nō-ˈmad-ik
nomadism noun

More from Merriam-Webster on nomad

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