gnostic
[nos-tik]
- pertaining to knowledge.
- possessing knowledge, especially esoteric knowledge of spiritual matters.
- (initial capital letter) pertaining to or characteristic of the Gnostics.
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- (initial capital letter) a member of any of certain sects among the early Christians who claimed to have superior knowledge of spiritual matters, and explained the world as created by powers or agencies arising as emanations from the Godhead.
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Origin of gnostic
1555–65; < Late Latin Gnōsticī (plural) name of the sect < Greek gnōstikós (singular) pertaining to knowledge, equivalent to gnōst(ós) known + -ikos -ic
-gnostic
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Origin of -gnostic
< Medieval Latin -gnōsticus < Greek gnōstikós pertaining to knowledge
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for gnostic
Contemporary Examples
We also have the Gnostic Gospels, discovered in 1947 and adding a wealth of insights into early Christian thinking.
Historical Examples
The spread and influence of the Gnostic sects was notoriously wide.
The Religion of Babylonia and AssyriaMorris Jastrow
Omnia subito is not its device, but that of the Gnostic heresy.
Christianity and Greek PhilosophyBenjamin Franklin Cocker
He who is conversant with all kinds of wisdom will be pre-eminently a Gnostic.
Esoteric Christianity, or The Lesser MysteriesAnnie Besant
Similarly the g in gnostic, the e in eulogy, p in pneumonia, the h in chromatic.
OrthographyElmer W. Cavins
M. Papus speaks of him as the founder and patriarch of the Gnostic Church.
Devil-Worship in FranceArthur Edward Waite
gnostic
gnostical
- of, relating to, or possessing knowledge, esp esoteric spiritual knowledge
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Gnostic
- an adherent of Gnosticism
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- of or relating to Gnostics or to Gnosticism
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Word Origin
C16: from Late Latin Gnosticī the Gnostics, from Greek gnōstikos relating to knowledge, from gnōstos known, from gignōskein to know
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for gnostic
Gnostic
n.
1580s, "believer in a mystical religious doctrine of spiritual knowledge," from Late Latin Gnosticus, from Late Greek Gnostikos, noun use of adj. gnostikos "knowing, able to discern," from gnostos "knowable," from gignoskein "to learn, to come to know" (see know). Applied to various early Christian sects that claimed direct personal knowledge beyond the Gospel or the Church hierarchy.
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adj.
"relating to knowledge," 1650s, from Greek gnostikos "knowing, able to discern," from gnostos "known, perceived, understood," from gignoskein "to learn, to come to know" (see know).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper