AUTODIDACTIC Synonyms: 17 Similar and Opposite Words

autodidactic

adjective

Definition of autodidactic

as in self-taught

having skills or knowledge acquired through one's own efforts without formal training an autodidactic painter, John Singleton Copley learned his craft from books purchased from England

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of autodidactic His autodidactic impulses may lead him to the history of clock towers or to the interplanetary rarity of wood. — Paige Williams, New Yorker, 22 June 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for autodidactic

Adjective

However, a majority, 84%, of people say they're self-taught with no formal training in AI, and 55% say their workplace doesn't have an official AI policy, per the survey of 1,686 workers.

— Jennifer Liu, CNBC, 20 Aug. 2026
Smith started in finance and was self-taught in the business of fashion, building brands from the ground up, learning every part of the process–design, product development, manufacturing, marketing–by doing.

— Rebecca Suhrawardi, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026

Definition of self-taught

Adjective

In an early study, researchers collected about five hours of primitive tennis movements from amateur players using a compact motion-capture setup.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 24 Aug. 2026
In the 1850s, while living in Seneca Falls, New York, amateur scientist Eunice Newton Foote did a series of experiments that put different substances, including carbon dioxide and moist air, inside glass cylinders and left them in the sun.

— Peter Prengaman, Fortune, 24 Aug. 2026

Definition of amateur

Browse Nearby Words

autocrats

autodidactic

autoerotic

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Autodidactic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/autodidactic. Accessed 27 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of autodidactic

adjective

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

southpaw

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Games & Quizzes