How to say "martyr" in Japanese

• 殉教者じゅんきょうしゃ
  nounThe strict sense: a person who dies for a faith, as in accounts of Christian martyrs and saints. This is the word for religious martyrdom specifically, not for sufferers or disaster victims.
• 受難者じゅなんしゃ
  nounCenters on the sufferer sense: a person who undergoes hardship or pain. As 'martyr' it is a loose fit—one who suffers rather than one who dies for a faith.
• 殉難者じゅんなんしゃ
  nounChiefly a victim: a person who perishes in a disaster, accident, or in the line of duty. Its 'martyr' sense—dying for a cause—is secondary; for religious martyrdom 殉教者 is the word.

For a martyr in the strict sense—one who dies for a faith—use 殉教者; 殉難者 chiefly means a victim who perishes in a disaster or in the line of duty, and 受難者 centers on suffering.

Usage comparisons are AI-assisted and cross-checked by multiple models; for study reference only

• 殉教者じゅんきょうしゃmartyr
• 受難者じゅなんしゃmartyr
• 殉難者じゅんなんしゃvictim