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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
Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 25 Mar. 2026
Webb, who’s also credited as a mentor to the late conservative pundit Charlie Kirk, served as President of the International Cheer Union and founded Varsity Spirit in 1974.
—Brian Niemietz, New York Daily News, 23 Mar. 2026
So there was no guarantee that Schaeffer would return, and many baseball pundits said the Rockies needed to bring in a veteran, old-school manager to clean things up.
—Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 22 Mar. 2026
Pictures removed Azmoun later removed the pictures but was still lambasted on state TV on Thursday with soccer pundit Mohammad Misaghi saying the striker’s actions had been an act of disloyalty.
—Reuters, CNN Money, 20 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Pundit.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/pundit. Accessed 27 Mar. 2026.
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