Karaite
[ kar-uh-ahyt ]
/ ˈkær əˌaɪt /
noun Judaism.
a member of a sect, founded in Persia in the 8th century a.d. by the religious leader Anan ben David, that rejected the Talmud and the teachings of the rabbis in favor of strict adherence to the Bible as the only source of Jewish law and practice.
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Origin of Karaite
1720–30; <Hebrew qarāʿ(īm) (equivalent to qarā Biblical scholar, literally, reader + īm plural suffix) + -ite1
OTHER WORDS FROM Karaite
Kar·a·ism [kar-uh-iz-uhm], /ˈkær əˌɪz əm/, Kar·a·it·ism [kar-uh-ahy-tiz-uhm], /ˈkær ə aɪˌtɪz əm/, nounKar·a·it·ic [kar-uh-it-ik], /ˌkær əˈɪt ɪk/, adjectiveWords nearby Karaite
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020
Example sentences from the Web for Karaite
British Dictionary definitions for Karaite
Karaite
/ (ˈkɛərəˌaɪt) /
noun
a member of a Jewish sect originating in the 8th century ad, which rejected the Talmud, favoured strict adherence to and a literal interpretation of the Bible, and attempted to deduce a code of life from it
adjective
of, relating to, or designating the Karaite sect
Word Origin for Karaite
C18: from Hebrew qāraīm members of the sect, scripturalists, from qārā to read
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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