proselyte
[pros-uh-lahyt]
- a person who has changed from one opinion, religious belief, sect, or the like, to another; convert.
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Origin of proselyte
1325–75; Middle English < Late Latin prosēlytus < Greek (Septuagint) prosḗlytos, for *prosḗlythos newcomer, proselyte, equivalent to prosēlyth- (suppletive stem of prosérchesthai to approach) + -os noun suffix
Synonyms
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Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
proselyte
- a person newly converted to a religious faith or sect; a convert, esp a gentile converted to Judaism
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- a less common word for proselytize
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Word Origin
C14: from Church Latin prosēlytus, from Greek prosēlutos recent arrival, convert, from proserchesthai to draw near
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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Word Origin and History for proselyte
n.
late 14c., from Old French proselite (13c., Modern French prosélyte), from Late Latin proselytus, from Greek proselytos "convert (to Judaism), stranger, one who has come over," noun use of adjective meaning "having arrived," from second aorist stem of proserkhesthai "to come or go; surrender; associate with," from proti "toward" + root of eleusesthai "to be going to come," from PIE *elu-to-, from root *leudh- "to go." Originally in English "a Gentile converted to Judaism" (late 14c.).
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper