philosopher

noun

phi·los·o·pher fə-ˈlä-s(ə-)fər

Synonyms of philosopher next

: a person who seeks wisdom or enlightenment : scholar, thinker

: a student of philosophy

: a person whose philosophical perspective makes meeting trouble with equanimity easier

: an expounder of a theory in a particular area of experience

: one who philosophizes

Examples of philosopher in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The philosopher of science Daniel Dennett once lamented that his peers didn’t take engineering seriously enough. —

Sam Kean, WSJ, 24 Nov. 2023 Such was one of the more hopeful conclusions of filmmakers, scientists, philosophers and legal experts who took on the subject of AI and its impact on cinematography, presenting their findings at Camerimage this year. —

Will Tizard, Variety, 20 Nov. 2023 While studying modern art and film theory at the University of Michigan in the early 1970s, Fialka was partial to the work of Canadian philosopher Marshall McLuhan. —

Kyle Melnick, Washington Post, 16 Nov. 2023 The Israeli philosopher Yuval Noah Harari wrote for TIME this week a piece that is at once a history of this moment and a plea to the world. —

Sam Jacobs, TIME, 18 Oct. 2023 Supporters who traveled across state lines to support the philosopher agreed with West's message on the political parties. —

Abby Cruz, ABC News, 4 Oct. 2023 And the Prussian educators were in turn influenced by the philosopher Johann Gottlieb Fichte, who was clear that schooling really should be about breaking children’s spirits. —

Andrew McAfee, Fortune, 14 Nov. 2023 This is a lot, but philosopher Jason Baehr writes that possessing good intellectual character requires successfully addressing all these challenges. —

Eranda Jayawickreme, Discover Magazine, 30 Oct. 2023 The scrolls stayed buried under volcanic mud until they were excavated in the 1700s from a single room that archaeologists believe held the personal working library of an Epicurean philosopher named Philodemus. —

Ashley Belanger, Ars Technica, 16 Oct. 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'philosopher.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English philosophe, philosophre, from Anglo-French, from Latin philosophus, from Greek philosophos, from phil- + sophia wisdom, from sophos wise

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler

The first known use of philosopher was in the 14th century

See more words from the same century