Did you know?
Neophyte is hardly a new addition to the English language—it's been part of the English vocabulary since the 14th century. It traces back through Late Latin to the Greek word neophytos, meaning "newly planted" or "newly converted." These Greek and Latin roots were directly transplanted into the early English uses of neophyte, which first referred to a person newly converted to a religion or cause. By the 1600s, neophyte had gained a more general sense of "a beginner or novice." Today you might consider it a formal elder sibling of such recent informal coinages as newbie and noob.
Cite this Entry
“Neophyte.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/neophyte. Accessed 12 Aug. 2026.
Copy Citation
