scientist
noun
scientist
American
[sahy-uhn-tist]
/ ˈsaɪ ən tɪst /
noun
scientists
plural
Scientist
1
British
/ ˈsaɪəntɪst /
noun
-
Christian Science Christ as supreme spiritual healer
-
short for Christian Scientist See Christian Scientist
scientist
2
British
/ ˈsaɪəntɪst /
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Etymology
Origin of scientist
Explanation
A scientist is a person with some kind of knowledge or expertise in any of the sciences, like biology or chemistry. See that guy in the white lab coat wearing pocket protectors and experimenting with chemicals? He’s definitely a scientist. The word science comes from the Latin, scientia, which means "knowledge." The sciences are branches of knowledge about the world that derive from repeated experiments. A scientist is any person with an interest in the sciences, from amateurs to professionals. A curious high school student interested in seeing what happens when he slips vinegar into his best friend's can of soda could be considered a kind of scientist!
Vocabulary lists containing scientist
Occupations
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"Hitching a Ride"
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 4
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
"Biofertilisers are eco-friendly and cost-effective supplements of chemical fertilisers," said Brijesh Mishra, principal scientist at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute.
From Barron's • Jun. 16, 2026
Around the world, tens of thousands of litres of helium-3 are likely to be produced this way every year, estimates David McCollum, distinguished scientist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee.
From BBC • Jun. 16, 2026
"Every El Niño is different," said JPL sea level researcher Severine Fournier, deputy project scientist for Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich.
From Science Daily • Jun. 15, 2026
A scientist said his group has precisely edited genes in an embryo, a landmark scientific move that is highly controversial.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 12, 2026
A young physicist named Edward Teller sat on a train with a fellow scientist, Otto Frisch.
From "Fallout: Spies, Superbombs, and the Ultimate Cold War Showdown" by Steve Sheinkin
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.
