proselyte

American  

[pros-uh-lahyt] / ˈprɒs əˌlaɪt /

noun

1. a person who has changed from one opinion, religious belief, sect, or the like, to another; convert.

   Synonyms:

   novice, neophyte

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verb (used with or without object)

• proselytes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• proselyted,
  past participle,  past
• proselyting
  present participle

1. proselytize.

proselyte British  

/ ˈprɒsɪˌlaɪt /

noun

1. a person newly converted to a religious faith or sect; a convert, esp a gentile converted to Judaism

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verb

1. a less common word for proselytize

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• proselyter
  noun
• proselytism
  noun
• proselytic
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• proselyting
  present
• proselyted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• proselyte
  simple
• proselytes
  simple
• have proselyted
  perfect
• has proselyted
  perfect
• am proselyting
  progressive
• are proselyting
  progressive
• is proselyting
  progressive
• have been proselyting
  perfect progressive
• has been proselyting
  perfect progressive

Past

• proselyted
  simple
• had proselyted
  perfect
• was proselyting
  progressive
• were proselyting
  progressive
• had been proselyting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will proselyte
  simple
• will have proselyted
  perfect
• will be proselyting
  progressive
• will have been proselyting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of proselyte

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English, from Late Latin prosēlytus, from Greek (Septuagint) prosḗlytos, for unattested prosḗlythos “newcomer, proselyte,” equivalent to prosēlyth- (suppletive stem of prosérchesthai “to approach”) + -os noun suffix

Explanation

A proselyte is a new convert, especially someone who has recently switched from one religion to another. In some Christian churches, a proselyte must be baptized. You can use the word proselyte to talk about any kind of convert, even those that aren't religious. You could, for example, call your brother a proselyte if he voted for a Republican in the last election but recently joined the Democratic party. The most common use of the word, however, is someone who converts to Judaism. Proselyte has a Greek root, proselytos, which means both "convert to Judaism" and "one who has come over."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

proselyte proselytes proselyted proselyting

Janet Kitselman also became a proselyte for the history of Waterford, helping to create educational programming at the town’s Second Street School.

From Washington Post ● Mar. 16, 2021

Mary Frank, the artist, is his friend and fellow solar-cooking proselyte.

From The New Yorker ● Sep. 23, 2019

Christian Angermayer is an unlikely proselyte of psychedelia: The German financier didn’t drink so much as a sip of beer for the first three decades of his life.

From Scientific American ● Jul. 9, 2019

"I am a big believer in the potency of artistic endeavor at its highest. To proselyte through your storytelling is not good storytelling."

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 16, 2015

You have instituted a sort of 'civil service,' with which 'you compass sea and land to make one proselyte.'

From Piccadilly A Fragment of Contemporary Biography by Laurence Oliphant

Some of the recent FDE proselytes, like OpenAI and Anthropic, have raised mind-boggling sums of money on the promise of a technology powerful enough to reshape the entire economy.

From MarketWatch ● Apr. 4, 2026

He’s converting new proselytes to the religion of live theater day after day.

From Slate ● Nov. 24, 2015

Still, proselytes often find that being Paleo quickly becomes a round-the-clock duty.

From New York Times ● Sep. 19, 2014

For new converts like Mr. Kagodo, the values of the young proselytes are as compelling as any set of religious beliefs.

From New York Times ● Apr. 13, 2012

They were displeased that Paul their brother would not subject his Gentile proselytes to Judaical usuages.

From Ecce Homo! A Critical Inquiry into the History of Jesus of Nazareth: Being a Rational Analysis of the Gospels by Paul Henry Thiry Baron d' Holbach

Legislators, initiative petitions, green paint, dynamite, burglars, proselyted athletes, and a hundred other things have been used in the fight between the two schools ever since the oldest professor can remember.

From Time Magazine Archive

The Old Left organized and proselyted, playing its part in bringing about the American welfare state.

From Time Magazine Archive

With the fiery zeal of the pioneer of a religious movement he preached in season and out of season his new faith, and proselyted with success even among those who scoffed.

From The One Woman by Thomas Dixon

Another group of persons also large potentially and a serious menace when proselyted by the apostles of rebellion, were the squatters and trespassers who were occupying land to which they had no lawful right.

From The Story of the Pony Express by Glenn D. (Glenn Danford) Bradley

My father's family was proselyted to the Presbyterian faith, and four of them joined that church, namely—my mother Lucy; my brothers Hyrum and Samuel Harrison; and my sister Sophronia.

From Jesus the Christ A Study of the Messiah and His Mission According to Holy Scriptures Both Ancient and Modern by James Edward Talmage

They support themselves while proselyting, and generally serve a two-year period.

From Time Magazine Archive

For the last two years we have endeavored to bring our proselyting activities out from under the table.

From Time Magazine Archive

At the same time, church representatives canvass likely Northern communities to check on the availability of jobs and housing and the outlook for proselyting.

From Time Magazine Archive

Meanwhile the Unitarian Association conducted its own investigation, exonerated Fritchman of using his position for "proselyting in behalf of the Communist Party cause."

From Time Magazine Archive

"Don't start proselyting to-day. To-day's going to be bad enough as it is."

From "The Sun Also Rises" by Ernest Hemingway