Neophyte Definition
Contents
English
Etymology
From Latin neophytus from Ancient Greek νεόφυτος (neophutos) from νέος (neos, “new”) + φυτόν (phuton, “plant, child”).
Pronunciation
Noun
neophyte (plural neophytes)
- A beginner.
- A novice (recent convert), a new convert or proselyte.
- (Christianity) A name given by the early Christians, and still given by the Roman Catholics, to those who have recently embraced the Christian faith, and been admitted to baptism, especially those converts from heathenism or Judaism.
- (biology) A plant species recently introduced to an area (in contrast to archaeophyte, a long-established introduced species).
Synonyms
- See also Wikisaurus:beginner
References
- Random House Dictionary, 2nd Edition, 1987.
Anagrams
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