evangelist

noun

evan·​ge·​list i-ˈvan-jə-list 

1

often Evangelist : a writer of any of the four Gospels

2

: a person who evangelizes

specifically : a Protestant minister or layman who preaches at special services

3

: an enthusiastic advocate

an evangelist for physical fitness

Examples of evangelist in a Sentence

an evangelist of space exploration

Recent Examples on the Web

Amazonians still embrace that thinking today, Jeff Barr, chief evangelist for AWS and a 23-year veteran of the company, told CNN. —Lisa Eadicicco, CNN Money, 27 Mar. 2026

At the same time, evangelists of a robust atheism—figures such as the biologist Richard Dawkins, the critic Christopher Hitchens, and the neuroscientist Sam Harris—toured the country offending salt-of-the-earth Americans with their contempt for religious belief. —Elizabeth Bruenig, The Atlantic, 26 Mar. 2026

But the court agreed with the public evangelist − Gabriel Olivier, who was previously convicted of violating the city's restrictions on public demonstrations − that a 1994 decision shouldn't apply to him. —Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 20 Mar. 2026

Some prediction market evangelists want to keep the rules lax. —The Week Us, TheWeek, 16 Mar. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

evangelist

noun

evan·​ge·​list i-ˈvan-jə-ləst 

: a Christian preacher who goes about from place to place trying to change or increase people's religious feelings

Etymology

Middle English evangelist "one of the writers of the four Gospels," from early French and Latin evangelista (same meaning), from Greek euangelizein "to preach the gospel," from euangelion "good news, gospel," from eu- "good" and angelos "messenger, angel"