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neophyte

American  
[nee-uh-fahyt] / ˈni əˌfaɪt /

noun

  1. a beginner or novice.

    He's a neophyte at chess.
    Synonyms:
    tyro, greenhorn

  2. Roman Catholic Church. a novice.

  3. a person newly converted to a belief, as a heathen, heretic, or nonbeliever; proselyte.

  4. Primitive Church. a person newly baptized.

neophyte British  
/ ˌniːəʊˈfɪtɪk, ˈniːəʊˌfaɪt /

noun

  1. a person newly converted to a religious faith

  2. RC Church a novice in a religious order

  3. a novice or beginner

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Word Forms

  • neophytic adjective
  • neophytish adjective
  • neophytism noun

Etymology

Origin of neophyte

First recorded in 1540–50; from Late Latin neophytus “newly planted,” from Greek neóphytos; neo-, -phyte

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.