Samaritan

American  

[suh-mar-i-tn] / səˈmær ɪ tn /

noun

1. an inhabitant of Samaria.

2. good Samaritan.

3. any of the dialects of Aramaic spoken by the Samaritans in ancient Israel and until recently still spoken in Nablus.

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adjective

1. pertaining to Samaria or to Samaritans.

Samaritan British  

/ səˈmærɪtən /

noun

1. a native or inhabitant of Samaria

2. short for Good Samaritan

3. a member of a voluntary organization ( the Samaritans ) which offers counselling to people in despair, esp by telephone

4. the dialect of Aramaic spoken in Samaria

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adjective

1. of or relating to Samaria

Samaritan Idioms  

1. see good Samaritan.

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Other Word Forms

• Samaritanism
  noun

Etymology

Origin of Samaritan

First recorded before 1000; Middle English, Old English, from Late Latin plural adjective and noun Samarītānī “Samaritan, Samaritans” (from Greek Samarī́t(ēs) “a Samaritan,” derivative of Samáreia “Samaria”)

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Samaritan

Rinderknecht's lawyers argued in the trial that he was a Good Samaritan who had called emergency services to report the initial fire, maintaining that the blaze had actually been sparked by fireworks.

From Barron's ● Aug. 19, 2026

Canty, from Maldon, won the Euromillions prize with his partner, Katie Sullivan, on 5 May 2020, days after his Good Samaritan deed.

From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026

The 2½-month-old puppy, Peanut, was brought in as a stray on March 9 after being rescued by a good Samaritan in Arcadia, according to Jamie Holeman, chief marketing and communications officer at Pasadena Humane.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 7, 2026

The Samaritan Clinic is a small, free clinic serving people without health insurance in Albany, Georgia.

From Salon ● Jan. 4, 2026

An explorer, a businesswoman, a Good Samaritan, an ice cream maker—something.

From "We Were Liars" by E. Lockhart