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It’s no hot take to say that the original pundits were highly learned scholars and teachers in India; it’s just a statement of fact. Our English word pundit comes from the Hindi word paṇḍit, a term of respect (and sometimes an honorary title) for a wise person, especially one with knowledge of philosophy, religion, and law; its ultimate source is the Sanskrit word paṇḍita, meaning “learned.” English speakers have used pundit to refer to sages of India since the 1600s, but as is typically done with English, they eventually pushed the word into new semantic territory. By the late 1800s, pundit could also refer to a member of what is sometimes called the commentariat or punditocracy—that is, the collective group of political commentators, financial analysts, and newspaper columnists often paid to share their views on a variety of subjects.
Examples of pundit in a Sentence
Tipranks.com Staff, CNBC, 7 Sep. 2025
National media and pundits pondered why a team would sell off Alan Pulido a year after signing him to a large extension and not commit to William Agada as the starter, as the two had somewhat similar chance and shot-creation numbers in 2024.
—Daniel Sperry, Kansas City Star, 6 Sep. 2025
Going into Thursday night’s season opener against the defending Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, the Dallas Cowboys were not given much of a shot by most pundits.
—Nick Harris, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 5 Sep. 2025
Many pundits believe that their reign over the NFL is over after losing to the Eagles in the Super Bowl in February.
—Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 4 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for pundit
Cite this Entry
“Pundit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pundit. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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