Baptist

[bap-tist]

noun

1. a member of a Christian denomination that baptizes believers by immersion and that is usually Calvinistic in doctrine.

2. (lowercase),  a person who baptizes.

3. the Baptist. John the Baptist.

adjective

1. Also Baptistic of or relating to Baptists or their doctrines or practices.

Baptist

/ ˈbæptɪst /

noun

1. a member of any of various Christian sects that affirm the necessity of baptism (usually of adults and by immersion) following a personal profession of the Christian faith

2. See John the Baptist

adjective

1. denoting, relating to, or characteristic of any Christian sect that affirms the necessity of baptism following a personal profession of the Christian faith

Other Word Forms

• anti-Baptist adjective
• non-Baptist adjective
• pro-Baptist adjective
• pseudo-Baptist adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of Baptist¹

First recorded in 1150–1200; Middle English baptiste, from Old French, from Late Latin baptista, from Greek baptistḗs, equivalent to bapt(ízein) “to baptize ” + -istēs -ist

Example Sentences

Grace De Mars, a 21-year-old senior at California Baptist University who attended the conference, recently got engaged to her high school boyfriend.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

She competed in—and won—pageants and was active in her Baptist church, before getting a degree in home economics from the University of Kentucky.

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Then you’d pass First Baptist and Haywood’s, the only restaurant in town where Colored people could eat.

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The trustees of the charity, which is formally known as The Almshouse of St John the Baptist and St John the Evangelist, decided to sell the work to avoid insurance and security costs.

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The 84-year-old Baptist minister and political figure has been battling the neurodegenerative condition for more than a decade, according to the statement.

Read more on Los Angeles Times