dilettantes

variants or dilettanti
plural of dilettante
1
as in amateurs
a person who regularly or occasionally engages in an activity as a pastime rather than as a profession a dilettante at heart, she was never willing to commit the time and effort that ballet demands

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2
as in scholars
dated a person having a knowledgeable and fine appreciation of the arts she writes about art not from the point of view of an artist but from that of a committed dilettante

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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 dilettantes Packer and Srulovich aren’t dilettantes, either. Lela London, Forbes.com, 26 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dilettantes
Noun
  • But that’s emblematic of the larger challenge for growing pool in the US, because even many amateurs who play in 8-ball pool leagues might not recognize Gorst or the best American of the last two decades, five-time US Open champion Shane Van Boening.
    Jeremy Herb, CNN Money, 6 Nov. 2025
  • By their third term in Congress – about six years after first taking office – the gap in bipartisan behavior between amateurs and experienced legislators largely disappears.
    Jeff Harden, The Conversation, 3 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • Rolling Stone spoke with two scholars who explain that the clips, overwhelmingly targeting Black women, play on decades-old stereotypes used to slander welfare recipients.
    Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 6 Nov. 2025
  • Multiple scholars focus on the Black and Native experiences, allowing those sides of the stories to feel like more than mere footnotes, if never truly focal.
    Daniel Fienberg, HollywoodReporter, 6 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • The Ringbrothers Kingpin was unveiled at the Specialty Equipment Market Association show (SEMA) in Las Vegas, which is a haven for aftermarket wizards, tuners, and auto tinkerers of all stripes.
    Erik Shilling, Robb Report, 5 Nov. 2025
  • From the early tinkerers who first imagined electrical speech to the engineers who built continental cables, digital switching, satellites, and wireless networks, countless inventors have pushed the limits of how far and how fast a human voice can travel.
    Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 29 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Chai masala connoisseurs assemble!
    Stacia Datskovska, Footwear News, 3 Nov. 2025
  • Calling all chocolate connoisseurs!
    Paloma Chavez, Sacbee.com, 29 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Dilettantes.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dilettantes. Accessed 12 Nov. 2025.

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