autodidact

[ aw-toh-dahy-dakt, -dahy-dakt ]

noun

1. a person who has learned a subject without the benefit of a teacher or formal education; a self-taught person.

autodidact

/ ˈɔːtəʊˌdaɪdækt /

noun

1. a person who is self-taught

Derived Forms

• ˌautodiˈdactic, adjective

Other Words From

• au·to·di·dac·tic [aw-toh-dahy-, dak, -tik], adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of autodidact¹

First recorded in 1525–35; from Greek autodídaktos “self-taught”; auto- ¹, didactic

Word History and Origins

Origin of autodidact¹

C16: from Greek autodidaktos self-taught, from autos self + didaskein to teach

Example Sentences

She was also an autodidact, an illegitimate girl from the provinces whose intelligence became the stuff of legend.

From The Daily Beast

Oswald was a left-wing autodidact who had defected to the Soviet Union.

From The Daily Beast

Since Carruth is a one-man band and autodidact, he learned how to create the special effects for the creature himself.

From The Daily Beast

As a puff autodidact, it's taken me longer to figure them out than someone who's been formally trained.

From The Daily Beast