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
He had never awarded full marks until revisiting one at St John The Baptist Church in Old Sodbury, South Gloucestershire, on his wedding day.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 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
He shared a first name with his father, a Baptist minister and a leader of the Black community in Terre Haute, Ind. His older siblings were A students.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 2, 2026
“We are here from the Bumblebee Baptist Church.”
From "Stella by Starlight" by Sharon M. Draper
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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Even the Southern Baptists were more evolved, as Baylor University had repealed their dancing ban in 1996.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
For six months, almost no one took notice of the brief filed quietly by Southern Baptists in a case winding its way to the Kentucky Supreme Court.
From New York Times ● Nov. 7, 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
Marian’s grandfather referred to himself as a Black Jew and practiced his adopted religion in a crowded household of devout Baptists.
From "The Voice That Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights" by Russell Freedman
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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.