as in amateur
a person who regularly or occasionally engages in an activity as a pastime rather than as a profession
as a nonexpert, I enjoy her readable articles on physics and astronomy
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Recent Examples of nonexpert
But nonexperts will struggle to determine what is essential and what is excessive in its highly specialized and technical realm.
—
Ross Andersen, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2025
Even people skilled at communicating scientific principles to nonexperts have been lured into the debate trap.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2023
How can nonexperts figure out what to eat when the experts can’t agree?
—Tamar Haspel, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2023
Now, ChatGPT and similar language processing tools promise to upend medical care again, providing patients with more data than a simple online search and explaining conditions and treatments in language nonexperts can understand.
—Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2023
The often vague language used to describe the science behind these fragrances can also cause confusion for a nonexpert.
—Emily Jensen, Allure, 27 Jan. 2022
As a nonexpert who mainly uses mats for lazily stretching between episodes of romantic Korean dramas, there’s something soothing about a cork surface.
—Vogue, 8 Jan. 2022
Expert ratings of news sources had stronger effects on belief than ratings from nonexpert users, and the effects were even stronger when the rating was low, suggesting the source was likely to be inaccurate.
—Alan R. Dennis, The Conversation, 2 Dec. 2019
Ross Andersen, The Atlantic, 5 Feb. 2025
Even people skilled at communicating scientific principles to nonexperts have been lured into the debate trap.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2023
How can nonexperts figure out what to eat when the experts can’t agree?
—Tamar Haspel, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2023
Now, ChatGPT and similar language processing tools promise to upend medical care again, providing patients with more data than a simple online search and explaining conditions and treatments in language nonexperts can understand.
—Karen Weintraub, USA TODAY, 27 Feb. 2023
The often vague language used to describe the science behind these fragrances can also cause confusion for a nonexpert.
—Emily Jensen, Allure, 27 Jan. 2022
As a nonexpert who mainly uses mats for lazily stretching between episodes of romantic Korean dramas, there’s something soothing about a cork surface.
—Vogue, 8 Jan. 2022
Expert ratings of news sources had stronger effects on belief than ratings from nonexpert users, and the effects were even stronger when the rating was low, suggesting the source was likely to be inaccurate.
—Alan R. Dennis, The Conversation, 2 Dec. 2019
Recent Examples of Synonyms for nonexpert
Noun
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Notable amateurs elected to Congress include Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Lauren Boebert and Marjorie Taylor-Greene.—
Jeff Harden,
The Conversation,
3 Nov. 2025
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In addition to Affleck, Whitney Leavitt — also of Mormon Wives fame — as well as Alix Earle, Robert Irwin, Scott Hoying of Pentatonix, Lauren Jauregui of Fifth Harmony, Jordan Chiles, Hilaria Baldwin and Danielle Fishel were cast as the show’s latest flock of celebrity amateur dancers.—
Hannah Dailey,
Billboard,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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How would the tinkerer-in-chief Guardiola galaxy-brain his way around this clash of styles?—
Jordan Campbell,
New York Times,
3 Nov. 2025
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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
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In layman’s terms, there’s a little joint in the knee that helps connect the shin bone and the fibula.—
Greg Liodice,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Oct. 2025
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In layman’s terms, the car ran too close to the ground, something that yields performance benefits by increasing downforce.—
Luke Smith,
New York Times,
15 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Nonexpert.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/nonexpert. Accessed 11 Nov. 2025.
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