as in recruit
a person who has recently been persuaded to join a religious sect
an adult proselyte who had only recently been baptized
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
as in to convert
to persuade to change to one's religious faith
she's been trying to proselyte everyone in the office ever since she joined that church
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of proselyte
James Romm, WSJ, 17 Dec. 2021
In order to understand this idea, the special relationship between God and the proselyte must be examined.
—Rabbi Avi Weiss, sun-sentinel.com, 17 May 2021
Kitselman also became a proselyte for the history of Waterford, helping to create educational programming at the town’s Second Street School.
—Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2021
Christian Angermayer is an unlikely proselyte of psychedelia: The German financier didn’t drink so much as a sip of beer for the first three decades of his life.
—Meghana Keshavan, Scientific American, 9 July 2019
Enter proselytes in acetate eyeglasses and Rosie Pope workwear, drawn by listservs like Brooklynitos and Fort Greene Kids and BoCoCa Moms (BoCoCa being an acronym for three adjacent Brooklyn neighborhoods).
—Sonja Sharp, latimes.com, 27 June 2018
The authors observe that Yemeni Jews share elevated IBD with other Jewish populations, suggesting more than an indigenous proselyte origin for this community.
—Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 13 Aug. 2012
Noun
Seneca went on to become a proselyte for the Stoic path, extolling its benefits in a long run of prose essays while also serving—in some eyes, dishonorably—as an adviser to Nero.
—James Romm, WSJ, 17 Dec. 2021
In order to understand this idea, the special relationship between God and the proselyte must be examined.
—Rabbi Avi Weiss, sun-sentinel.com, 17 May 2021
Kitselman also became a proselyte for the history of Waterford, helping to create educational programming at the town’s Second Street School.
—Washington Post, 17 Mar. 2021
Christian Angermayer is an unlikely proselyte of psychedelia: The German financier didn’t drink so much as a sip of beer for the first three decades of his life.
—Meghana Keshavan, Scientific American, 9 July 2019
Enter proselytes in acetate eyeglasses and Rosie Pope workwear, drawn by listservs like Brooklynitos and Fort Greene Kids and BoCoCa Moms (BoCoCa being an acronym for three adjacent Brooklyn neighborhoods).
—Sonja Sharp, latimes.com, 27 June 2018
The authors observe that Yemeni Jews share elevated IBD with other Jewish populations, suggesting more than an indigenous proselyte origin for this community.
—Razib Khan, Discover Magazine, 13 Aug. 2012
Recent Examples of Synonyms for proselyte
Noun
-
The former four-star recruit originally picked Ole Miss before transferring to South Carolina before the 2023 season.—
Shreyas Laddha,
Kansas City Star,
6 Jan. 2026
-
The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Smothers is a former four-star recruit who started his career at Oklahoma before transferring to NC State before the 2024 season.—
Sam Khan Jr,
New York Times,
6 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Inside the hole, that spin makes the ball roll along the cylinder like a mini-pendulum, converting potential energy into spin and then back again.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
5 Nov. 2025
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That total recently got a boost from Father Joe’s Villages, which converted one of its downtown shelters into a detox and sober-living program.—
Blake Nelson,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
5 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
Several Icons work alongside newcomers, assisting with citizenship applications and teaching music and language classes that preserve their community's cultural heritage.—
Sharon Chin,
CBS News,
8 Jan. 2026
-
Morgan Stanley currently doesn't crack the top-10 list of ETF issuers, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence, and commands fewer assets in the space than newcomers such as Neos Investments, which got its start in 2022.—
Vildana Hajric Bloomberg,
Arkansas Online,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
And Musk, with his empire of tech companies and unprecedented wealth, has a singular power to proselytize.—
Matteo Wong,
The Atlantic,
28 Oct. 2025
-
Well, there is a common understanding based on history that Jews are not a proselytizing religion, and generally speaking, through much of Jewish history where Jews didn’t have sovereignty, and were not always safe and secure, that has definitely been the case.—
Emma Specter,
Vogue,
24 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Proselyte.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/proselyte. Accessed 8 Jan. 2026.
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