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.

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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

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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; see neo-, -phyte

Explanation

A neophyte is someone who's brand new at something. You're a neophyte the first time you pick up a guitar and start learning to play. Neo- means new, and -phyte is from the Greek phuton, "plant" — like a baby plant, a neophyte is someone who is new to an activity. In Greek, neophytos (literally "newly planted") was used to refer to a new church convert. A political neophyte is someone who is newly elected and comes to Washington D.C. not understanding how the game of politics is played. A Frisbee neophyte is someone who has just thrown the disc for the first time.

Example Sentences

Neophyte reporter Roman Grady’s life partner, Ashley Lillian, has overcome life-threatening childbirth and a long bout of postpartum depression and wants to resume teaching yoga and caring for her 4-year-old son, Mason.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 18, 2024

Neophyte undergraduates like her needed to believe firmly that their tuition dollars entitled them to the same services that middle-class college students received, and to complain when their colleges dropped the ball.

From Washington Post • Oct. 23, 2021

But the pope will meet Orthodox Patriarch Neophyte and visit an Orthodox cathedral in Sofia.

From Reuters • May 3, 2019

Neophyte Composer Grant, a Navy veteran, has been a patient in Cushing Veterans Administration Hospital in Framingham, Mass, since last year.

From Time Magazine Archive

The letter was signed by the Deputy Chairman of the Holy Synod, Metropolitan Neophyte.

From The Grey Book by Snoek, Johan Martinus

Related Words

• newcomer
• novice