Baptist
Americannoun
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Baptists
plural
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a member of a Christian denomination that baptizes believers by immersion and that is usually Calvinistic in doctrine.
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(lowercase) a person who baptizes.
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the Baptist. John the Baptist.
adjective
noun
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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
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See John the Baptist
adjective
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of Baptist
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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Baptist Health and Ascension Sacred Heart are widely recognized for high-quality healthcare.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
Religious leaders present in Blue Ash on Sunday also included women serving as a Jewish rabbi, a Baptist minister and a Muslim chaplain.
From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026
As Ms. Wilensky-Lanford notes, at the time of the nation’s founding, Baptist firebrands and Deist skeptics worked together in the cause of liberty.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
Willis, born July 1, 1951, in Texas but a San Francisco native, grew up around gospel music in his minister father’s Baptist church.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
He glanced at the peeling white Calvary Baptist Church up the street from his house.
From "The Serpent King" by Jeff Zentner
Born in Michigan and raised in Glendale by devout Baptists, he became conscious of “the shame and the degradation” of poverty when his father’s business ventures flopped.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2024
Both are Baptists who talk about faith values.
From Slate ● Mar. 4, 2024
Even the Southern Baptists were more evolved, as Baylor University had repealed their dancing ban in 1996.
From Salon ● Dec. 20, 2023
He also asked Baptists to pray for the committee staff “and the McLaurin family” and promised “further updates” on the search process “in a commitment to transparency.”
From Washington Times ● Aug. 17, 2023
Most had thought Miss Love would go over to the Baptists right away or else hide at home, one.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
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.
