neophyte

noun

neo·​phyte ˈnē-ə-ˌfīt 

1

: a new convert : proselyte

2

: novice sense 1

3

: tyro, beginner

a neophyte when it comes to computers

neophytes fresh from graduate schools of business

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.

Synonyms of neophyte

• newcomer
• recruit
• novice

Examples of neophyte in a Sentence

neophytes are assigned an experienced church member to guide them through their first year

Recent Examples on the Web

But that sonic democratization is a large part of Suno’s allure for neophytes, who welcome the opportunity to have AI do most — or all — of the work for them, almost instantaneously. —George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026

Within weeks of his rousing debut, Platner became an object lesson in the perils of rolling the dice with an unvetted neophyte in such a crucial Senate battleground. —Mark Leibovich, The Atlantic, 16 Mar. 2026

Neither Democrat is a neophyte by any stretch. —A.d. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 11 Mar. 2026

For its candidates in each of Hungary's 106 individual voting constituencies, Tisza has largely drawn on political neophytes locally active as entrepreneurs, doctors, economists, educators and other professionals. —Arkansas Online, 16 Feb. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Middle English neophite, borrowed from Late Latin neophytus, borrowed from Greek neóphytos "newly planted" (in New Testament and patristic Greek, "newly converted, new convert"), from neo- neo- + -phytos, verbal adjective of phýein "to bring forth, produce" — more at be

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for neophyte

• affright
• airtight
• albite
• alight
• alright
• aplite
• aright
• bainite
• birthright
• bobwhite
• bornite
• bullfight

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Kids Definition

neophyte

noun

neo·​phyte ˈnē-ə-ˌfīt 

1

: a person who has recently joined a religion

2

: beginner, novice