conquistador

noun

con·​quis·​ta·​dor kän-ˈkē-stə-ˌdȯr 

kən-,

 also  -ˈkwi-,

-ˈki-

plural conquistadores (ˌ)kän-ˌkē-stə-ˈdȯr-ēz 

-ˈdȯr-ˌās,

kən-;

(ˌ)kän-ˌkwi-,

-ˌki-

or conquistadors

: one that conquers

specifically : a leader in the Spanish conquest of America and especially of Mexico and Peru in the 16th century

Examples of conquistador in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The author was struck by the Spanish conquistadores’ arrival in the New World, and of their enforcement of the Requerimiento, a document that informed Native populations of their subjection to the Spanish Empire. —Carly Tagen-Dye, People.com, 4 Mar. 2025

Hernán Cortés, the Spanish conquistador who blasted his way through Aztec Mexico, complained about them in a 1525 letter to his master, the Holy Roman Emperor. —Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times, 20 Feb. 2025

Wilson counts the Edwardian explorer and conquistador among his top choices. —Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 15 Feb. 2025

Soon after, conquistador Hernán Cortés arrived in Central America and began the Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire in 1519, which ended in 1521 with the fall of Tenochtitlan, the Aztec capital. —Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 30 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Spanish, ultimately from Latin conquirere — see conquer

First Known Use

1830, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for conquistador

• forevermore
• hereinbefore
• kinetochore
• kwashiorkor
• abhor
• abor
• adore
• afore
• ardour
• ashore
• backdoor
• before

Kids Definition

conquistador

noun

con·​quis·​ta·​dor kȯŋ-ˈkēs-tə-ˌdȯ(ə)r 

kän-ˈk(w)is-,

kən-

plural conquistadores kȯŋ-ˌkēs-tə-ˈdȯr-ēz 

-ˈdȯr-ˌās;

-ˈdōr-;

kän-k(w)is-,

ˈkən-

or conquistadors

: a leader in the Spanish conquest of America in the 16th century

Etymology

Spanish, derived from Latin conquirere "to search for"