scientist
Americannoun
noun
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Christian Science Christ as supreme spiritual healer
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short for Christian Scientist See Christian Scientist
noun
Other Word Forms
- nonscientist noun
Etymology
Origin of scientist
Explanation
A scientist is a person with some kind of knowledge or expertise in any of the sciences, like biology or chemistry. See that guy in the white lab coat wearing pocket protectors and experimenting with chemicals? He’s definitely a scientist. The word science comes from the Latin, scientia, which means "knowledge." The sciences are branches of knowledge about the world that derive from repeated experiments. A scientist is any person with an interest in the sciences, from amateurs to professionals. A curious high school student interested in seeing what happens when he slips vinegar into his best friend's can of soda could be considered a kind of scientist!
Vocabulary lists containing scientist
Occupations
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"Hitching a Ride"
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"Principles of Business," Vocabulary from Chapter 4
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Asked about Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo, imprisoned for calling for political reforms, one model identified him as “a Japanese scientist known for his contributions to nuclear weapons technology.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 13, 2026
After “Daniel Deronda,” Nolan starred in the BBC drama “Doomwatch,” where he portrayed scientist George Harcastle, and as Nick Faunt in ITV’s romantic Depression-era miniseries “Shabby Tiger.”
From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 12, 2026
"It's very exciting as a scientist to find something unexpected like this that we weren't looking for," said Daniel Katz, CU Boulder chemistry PhD student and lead author of the study.
From Science Daily • Apr. 11, 2026
They send the message that “you can pollute with impunity,” said Carly Phillips, a senior scientist with the Union of Concerned Scientists.
From Salon • Apr. 10, 2026
Mrs. B’s words might have been blunt, but she hadn’t said it like the way I always called Tamika an annoying evil scientist.
From "Sir Fig Newton and the Science of Persistence" by Sonja Thomas
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
