Anabaptist

[ an-uh-bap-tist ]

noun

a member or descendant of a member of any of various Christian sects formed in Europe after 1520 that denied the validity of infant baptism, baptized believers only, emphasized simplicity and nonviolence, and advocated social and economic reforms as well as the complete separation of church and state.
Archaic. Baptist (def. 1).

adjective

of or relating to Anabaptists or Anabaptism: The book traces the origin of Anabaptist groups such as the Mennonites and Amish.

Origin of Anabaptist

First recorded in 1525–35; from New Latin anabaptista, from Medieval Latin anabapt(īzāre) “to rebaptize,” from Late Greek anabaptī́zein; see ana-, baptize + -ista -ist

Other words from Anabaptist

An·a·bap·tism, noun
An·a·bap·tis·ti·cal·ly [an-uh-bap-tis-tik-lee], /ˌæn ə bæpˈtɪs tɪk li/, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use Anabaptist in a sentence

It was in the year 1526 that Anabaptism first made its appearance in Strassburg.
German Culture Past and Present | Ernest Belfort Bax
Many of the victims had no connection with Anabaptism whatsoever; they were quiet followers of Luther or of Calvin.
A History of the Reformation (Vol. 2 of 2) | Thomas M. Lindsay
The old monotonous mode of describing Anabaptism has almost entirely disappeared with the modern careful examination of sources.
A History of the Reformation (Vol. 2 of 2) | Thomas M. Lindsay
Anabaptism was such a complicated movement that it presents peculiar difficulties.
A History of the Reformation (Vol. 2 of 2) | Thomas M. Lindsay
One sees here something like a French Quakerism, but with ingredients from older Anabaptism.
The Life of John Milton, Volume 5 (of 7), 1654-1660 | David Masson

British Dictionary definitions for Anabaptist

Anabaptist

/ (ˌænəˈbæptɪst) /

noun

a member of any of various 16th-century Protestant movements that rejected infant baptism, insisted that adults be rebaptized, and sought to establish Christian communism
a member of a later Protestant sect holding the same doctrines, esp with regard to baptism

adjective

of or relating to these movements or sects or their doctrines

Origin of Anabaptist

C16: from Ecclesiastical Latin anabaptista, from anabaptīzāre to baptize again, from Late Greek anabaptizein; see ana-, baptize

Derived forms of Anabaptist

Anabaptism, noun

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

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