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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Martyr \Mar"tyr\, noun [AS., from L. martyr, Gr. ma'rtyr, ma'rtys, prop., a witness; cf. Skr. sm[.r] to remember, E. memory.]
1. One who, by his death, bears witness to the truth of the gospel; one who is put to death for his religion; as, Stephen was the first Christian martyr. --Chaucer.
To be a martyr, signifies only to witness the truth of Christ; but the witnessing of the truth was then so generally attended with persecution, that martyrdom now signifies not only to witness, but to witness by death. --South.
2. Hence, one who sacrifices his life, his station, or what is of great value to him, for the sake of principle, or to sustain a cause.
Then if thou fall'st, O Cromwell, Thou fall'st a blessed martyr ! --Shak.
From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.44 [gcide]:
Martyr \Mar"tyr\, verb (used with an object) [imp. & p. p. {Martyred}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Martyring}.]
1. To put to death for adhering to some belief, esp. Christianity; to sacrifice on account of faith or profession. --Bp. Pearson.
2. To persecute; to torment; to torture. --Chaucer.
The lovely Amoret, whose gentle heart Thou martyrest with sorrow and with smart. --Spenser.
Racked with sciatics, martyred with the stone. --Pope.
From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:
martyr
noun
1: one who suffers for the sake of principle [syn: {sufferer}]
2: one who voluntarily suffers death as the penalty for refusing to renounce their religion
verb
1: kill as a martyr; "Saint Sebastian was martyred"
2: torture and torment like a martyr [syn: {martyrize}, {martyrise}]
From Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0 [moby-thes]:
118 Moby Thesaurus words for "martyr": afflict, agonize, ail, angel, angel of light, angel of love, annihilate, archangel, beatified soul, bereave of life, bite, bloody, burn, canonized mortal, carry away, carry off, celestial, chafe, cherub, cherubim, chloroform, claw, convulse, crucify, cut, cut down, cut off, deprive of life, destroy, dispatch, dispose of, distress, do away with, do for, do to death, end, excruciate, execute, exterminate, fester, finish, finish off, fret, gall, give pain, gnaw, grate, grind, gripe, harrow, heavenly being, hurt, immolate, impale, inflame, inflict pain, irritate, kill, kill by inches, lacerate, lancinate, launch into eternity, liquidate, lynch, macerate, make away with, martyrize, messenger of God, nip, object of compassion, pain, patron saint, pierce, pinch, poison, poor devil, prey, prick, principality, prolong the agony, punish, purge, put away, put down, put to death, put to sleep, put to torture, rack, rankle, rasp, recording angel, remove from life, rip, rub, sacrifice, saint, savage, saved soul, scarify, seraph, seraphim, slay, soul in glory, stab, starve, sting, sufferer, take life, take off, torment, torture, try, tweak, twist, victim, wound, wretch, wring
From THE DEVIL'S DICTIONARY ((C)1911 Released April 15 1993) [devils]:
MARTYR, noun One who moves along the line of least reluctance to a desired death.
From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:
Martyr one who bears witness of the truth, and suffers death in the cause of Christ (Acts 22:20; Rev. 2:13; 17:6). In this sense Stephen was the first martyr. The Greek word so rendered in all other cases is translated "witness." (1.) In a court of justice (Matt. 18:16; 26:65; Acts 6:13; 7:58; Heb. 10:28; 1 Tim. 5:19). (2.) As of one bearing testimony to the truth of what he has seen or known (Luke 24:48; Acts 1:8, 22; Rom. 1:9; 1 Thess. 2:5, 10; 1 John 1:2).
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