Martin Luther King Jr.
52
2.3
- proper noun
- /ˈmɑrtɪn ˈluːθər kɪŋ dʒuːniər/
- Hesburgh locked arms with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., staunchly advocating for civil and human rights; he defied President Nixon.
- the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.
- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- the annual Martin Luther King Jr. festival
Examples
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Then involve students in creating their own link between two historical figures, such as Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.
Academic text (2012) -
Three people were most often chosen at each grade level: Martin Luther King Jr., Abraham Lincoln, and George Washington.
Academic text (2003) -
We will, in fact, have reached the "Beloved Community" that Martin Luther King, Jr. could see quite clearly even 50 years ago.
Academic text (2005) -
Martin Luther King, Jr., was invited to be a contributing editor and submitted articles.
Academic text (2014) -
Such acceptance is part of what Martin Luther King Jr. called "the madness of militarism."
Academic text (2005) -
Consider the perhaps surprising support given to such an idea by Martin Luther King, Jr. in a sermon he gave in 1963.
Academic text (2014) -
One of the books students read was Martin Luther King, Jr. and the March on Washington (Ruffin, 2000).
Academic text (2012) -
We were schooled to believe, per Martin Luther King, Jr., that the "arc of history bends toward justice."
Blog text (27) -
Throughout the fifties and sixties, Martin Luther King, Jr., was a blur of activity.
Academic text (2003) -
In the 1960s, Martin Luther King Jr. led peaceful protests for civil rights across the United States.
Synonyms
172
1.9
A United States civil rights leader who used peaceful protest to win equal rights for Black people
Surface Forms
Morphology
This is a specific proper name referring to a historical person; knowing the constituent words ('Martin', 'Luther', 'king', 'Jr.') does not allow a B1 learner to infer his identity or role as a U.S. civil rights leader. Proper names are referential and largely arbitrary across languages, so the overall meaning cannot be derived compositionally from the parts.
Etymology
Martin Luther King Jr. was born Michael King Jr., but his father later renamed him after the famous church leader Martin Luther, who started big religious change long ago. That's why Martin Luther King Jr. is remembered as a 'civil rights' leader who used 'peaceful protest' to fight for equality.