Ishmaelite

American  

[ish-mee-uh-lahyt, -mey-uh-, -muh-] / ˈɪʃ mi əˌlaɪt, -meɪ ə-, -mə- /

noun

1. a descendant of Ishmael, the traditional ancestor of the Arab peoples.

2. a wanderer or outcast.

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Ishmaelite British  

/ ˈɪʃmeɪəˌlaɪt /

noun

1. a supposed descendant of Ishmael; a member of a desert people of Old Testament times

2. rare an outcast

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Other Word Forms

• Ishmaelitish adjective
• Ishmaelitism noun

Etymology

Origin of Ishmaelite

First recorded in 1570–80; Ishmael + -ite ¹

Example Sentences

A certain Ishmaelite merchant is related to have invited Rabba to come and see where the heavens and the earth touched.

From Hebrew Literature by Wilson, Epiphanius

Hear, O spirit world, if such there be, that, in the days to come, you may witness how faithfully Earl Bluefield, Humanity's Ishmaelite, kept his word.

From The Hindered Hand or, The Reign of the Repressionist by Bell, Robert E.

The Slaying of an Ishmaelite SPEED, fleetly speed, thou courser bold, and track the desert's trackless way.

From Alroy The Prince Of The Captivity by Disraeli, Benjamin, Earl of Beaconsfield

We like to think of him as an Ishmaelite, as one who is against his age, since the majority is often incapable of welcoming a new and great idea even emotionally treated.

From The Literature of Ecstasy by Mordell, Albert

Alone was he, which proclaimed him an outcast from elephantine society—an Ishmaelite in his own land.

From The Vee-Boers A Tale of Adventure in Southern Africa by Reid, Mayne