Methodist

[meth-uh-dist]

noun

a member of the largest Christian denomination that grew out of the revival of religion led by John Wesley: stresses both personal and social morality and has an Arminian doctrine and, in the U.S., a modified episcopal polity.

(lowercase) a person who relies greatly or excessively on methods or a particular method.

adjective

Also Meth·od·is·tic, Meth·od·is·ti·cal. of or relating to the Methodists or Methodism.

Origin of Methodist

First recorded in 1585–95; method + -ist

Related formsMeth·od·is·ti·cal·ly, adverbnon-Meth·od·ist, noun, adjectivenon-Meth·od·is·tic, adjectivepre-Meth·od·ist, adjective, nounpro-Meth·od·ist, adjective, nounpseu·do-Meth·od·ist, adjective, noun

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

Examples from the Web for methodist

Contemporary Examples of methodist

Julie Tucker-Trainum was a Methodist minister but eventually left the church when she came out.
The Heroic Lesbian Couple of Oklahoma Who Fought for Equal Marriage—and Won
Randy R. Potts
October 7, 2014
The new copy-reader here mentioned was C.C. Foss, a cherubic little fellow who was also a Methodist preacher.
The Stacks: H.L. Mencken on the 1904 Baltimore Fire
H.L. Mencken
October 4, 2014
Dr. William Lewis Corporon and his grandson, 14-year-old Reat Griffin Underwood were both members of a local Methodist church.
Frazier Glenn Miller Would Kill Every Jew Like Me
Hampton Stevens
April 14, 2014
For a while, she fell into a depression and abandoned the churchgoing Methodist tradition in which she was reared.
Joy Reid, MSNBC Anchor, on the Racism of the Tea Party, Family Dramas, and Why She Loves Boxing
Lloyd Grove
March 27, 2014
Raised a Methodist, Phelps was ordained a Southern Baptist minister in 1947 at the age of 17.
This Man Is The Future of Westboro Baptist Church
Caitlin Dickson
March 24, 2014

Historical Examples of methodist

Immediately after this they go to class-meeting at the Methodist Church.
Harriet, The Moses of Her People
Sarah H. Bradford
And sez he, "That is suthin' that we Methodist men can't stand."
Samantha Among the Brethren, Part 5.
Josiah Allen's Wife (Marietta Holley)
It is a question of law, Methodist law, and Methodist law alone.
Samantha Among the Brethren, Part 7.
Josiah Allen's Wife (Marietta Holley)
The first attempt at Methodist organization was somewhere between 1824 and 1827.
Cleveland Past and Present
Maurice Joblin
For many years he was connected with the Methodist church on University Heights.
Cleveland Past and Present
Maurice Joblin

British Dictionary definitions for methodist

Methodist

noun

a member of any of the Nonconformist denominations that derive from the system of faith and practice initiated by John Wesley and his followers

adjective Methodistic, Methodistical

of or relating to Methodism or the Church embodying it (the Methodist Church)

Derived FormsMethodistically, adverb

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 methodist

Methodist

"One of a new kind of puritans lately arisen, so called from their profession to live by rules and in constant method" [Johnson]. Protestant religious sect founded 1729 at Oxford University by John and Charles Wesley, took that name almost from inception, but it had been used since at least 1686 for various new methods of worship. Related: Methodism.