flagellant

[flaj-uh-luh nt, fluh-jel-uh nt]

noun

a person who flagellates or scourges himself or herself 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.

Origin of flagellant

1555–65; < Latin flagellant- (stem of flagellāns) whipping, present participle of flagellāre. See flagellum, -ant

Related formsflag·el·lant·ism, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for flagellant

Historical Examples of flagellant

"Vainglory is a sleeveless errand," murmured the spirit of the flagellant.
Under the Rose
Frederic Stewart Isham
The big drummer of the Company stepped to the front; he was the flagellant.
The adventures of Kimble Bent
James Cowan
If I was a Flagellant now, I would don hairshirt and up flail.
For the Term of His Natural Life
Marcus Clarke
He had given up a high position at the papal court to lead the life of a flagellant and barefooted friar.
History of the Jews, Vol. IV (of VI)
Heinrich Graetz
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

British Dictionary definitions for flagellant

flagellant

flagellator (ˈflædʒɪˌleɪtə)

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 Formsflagellantism, 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

Word Origin and History for flagellant

late 16c., from Latin flagellantem (nominative flagellans), present participle of flagellare "to scourge, lash" (see flagellum).