flagellant

[ flaj-uh-luhnt, fluh-jel-uhnt ]

/ ˈflædʒ ə lənt, fləˈdʒɛl ənt /

Save This Word!

noun

a person who flagellates or scourges their own body for religious discipline.

a person who derives sexual pleasure from whipping or being whipped by another person.

(often initial capital letter) one of a medieval European sect of fanatics who practiced scourging in public.

adjective

flagellating.

severely criticizing: a flagellant attack on the opposition party.

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?

Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of flagellant

First recorded in 1555–65; from Latin flagellant- (stem of flagellāns ) “whipping,” present participle of flagellāre; see flagellum, -ant

OTHER WORDS FROM flagellant

flag·el·lant·ism, noun

Words nearby flagellant

flacon, flag, flag captain, flag day, flag down, flagellant, flagellar, Flagellata, flagellate, flagellation, flagelliform

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

How to use flagellant in a sentence

And with a flagellant's pleasure the patient nurses this fire of fever, till it flames up in a bright blaze.
mile Verhaeren|Stefan Zweig
She did not see in Clare's hopeless passion the joy of the flagellant, or the self-dramatization of a neurotic girl.
The Breaking Point|Mary Roberts Rinehart
Yet no flagellant ever bent more meekly under his own blows than Charlotte did as she resigned herself to bearing that cross.
The Locusts' Years|Mary Helen Fee
No flagellant of old ever trembled beneath the body lash as he under the spiritual punishment.
The Chalice Of Courage|Cyrus Townsend Brady

If it would have freed her from pain he would have hugged his own with the savage exultance of a flagellant.
The Mystery of The Barranca|Herman Whitaker

British Dictionary definitions for flagellant

flagellant

flagellator (ˈflædʒɪˌleɪtə)

/ (ˈflædʒɪlənt, fləˈdʒɛlənt) /

noun

a person who whips himself or others either as part of a religious penance or for sexual gratification

(often capital) (in medieval Europe) a member of a religious sect who whipped themselves in public

Derived forms of flagellant

flagellantism, noun

Word Origin for flagellant

C16: from Latin flagellāre to whip, from flagellum

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