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homesteader

homesteader

7 6.9
A person who moves to empty land and works it so the government lets them own it
  • noun
  • /ˈhoʊmˌstɛdər/
  • Archaic
translation icon : colono
  • In the late 1800s, a homesteader could claim up to 160 acres of land for farming.

Examples

  • And this made me feel in unison with a time passed with the original homesteaders of America.

  • The early 1880s promised much for homesteaders on America's Great Plains.

    Academic text (1990)
  • Unless they bring in some homesteaders with them.

  • I was a chef for 15 years; now I'm a small farm homesteader...

    Blog text (18)
  • Some of these people are joining the DIY movement, and others are becoming homesteaders.

    Academic text (2012)
  • Farmers, ranchers, homesteaders, this well driller is an example of modern American industry at its finest.

  • Compile a list of farming and cooking tools that homesteaders would need to survive on the prairie.

    Academic text (1994)
  • In Montana's already marginal environment, the snow-eating chinook presented yet another challenge to the well-intentioned but ill-advised pioneer homesteader.

    Academic text (1999)
  • The homesteader worked hard to cultivate the land and establish a farm.

  • Many homesteaders faced challenges like harsh weather and limited resources.

Synonyms

settler
vshomesteader
108 4.1

A person who moves to a new area to live and set up a home

seeks land ownership through a government scheme and by cultivating the land
pioneer
vshomesteader
36 4.4

A person who is among the first to move to and prepare new land

focuses on gaining legal title by working land under a state program
squatter
vshomesteader
  • Archaic
1 7.1

A person who moves onto government land to own it after meeting rules

uses a formal government program and farm work to obtain ownership
nester
vshomesteader
  • Archaic
9.6

A person who lives on public land to try to gain ownership

works the land under a government program to gain ownership
preemptor
vshomesteader
  • Archaic
9.9

A person who claims public land first and then buys it under old laws

seeks ownership by living and farming land through a named government program

How Independent

landowner
42 2.5
homesteader
  • Archaic
7 6.9
settler
108 4.1
tenant
248 3.0
farmworker
5 1.6
visitor
908 1.0

Surface Forms

homesteader singular
homesteaders plural

Morphology

homesteader = homestead (semi-transparent) = home + stead + er

The agentive suffix -er is clear here, and the word straightforwardly means 'one who homesteads.'

Etymology

Homesteader starts with homestead, which is home 'home' plus stead 'place', and the ending -er 'person' shows who does it. So a homesteader is a person who settles on and works a 'home place' to make it their own, often under government programs that let people claim land.