Adjacent Words

Apologist definitions

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Webster's 1828 Dictionary

APOL'OGIST, n. [See Apology.]
One who makes an apology; one who speaks or writes in defense of another.

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: a person who argues to defend or justify some policy or institution; "an apologist for capital punishment" [syn: apologist, vindicator, justifier]

Merriam Webster's

noun Date: 1640 one who speaks or writes in defense of someone or something

Britannica Concise

Any of the Christian writers, primarily in the 2nd cent., who attempted to provide a defense of Christianity against Greco-Roman culture. Many of their writings were addressed to Roman emperors and were submitted to government secretaries in order to defend Christian beliefs and practices. The Apologists tried to prove the antiquity of Christianity as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy, and they argued that the worshipers of the mythological gods were truly godless. They also insisted on the philosophical nature of their faith and its high ethical standards. Greek Apologists include Justin Martyr and Clement of Alexandria. Latin Apologists of the 2nd cent. include Tertullian. See also apologetics.

Oxford Reference Dictionary

n. a person who defends something by argument. Etymology: F apologiste f. Gk apologizomai render account f. apologos account

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Apologist A*pol"o*gist, n. [Cf. F. apologiste.] One who makes an apology; one who speaks or writes in defense of a faith, a cause, or an institution; especially, one who argues in defense of Christianity.

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

(apologists) An apologist is a person who writes or speaks in defence of a belief, a cause, or a person's life. (FORMAL) 'I am no apologist for Hitler,' observed Pyat. N-COUNT

Soule's Dictionary of English Synonyms

n. Defender, vindicator, supporter, advocate.

Moby Thesaurus

Maecenas, Philadelphia lawyer, abettor, admirer, advocate, aficionado, angel, apologete, apologizer, arguer, argufier, backer, buff, casuist, champion, controversialist, debater, defender, dependence, disceptator, disputant, encourager, endorser, exponent, fan, favorer, friend at court, guard, guardhouse lawyer, justifier, logomacher, logomachist, lover, mainstay, maintainer, mooter, paladin, paranymph, partisan, patron, pilpulist, pleader, polemic, polemicist, polemist, promoter, proponent, protagonist, protector, reliance, second, seconder, sectary, sider, sponsor, stalwart, standby, successful advocate, support, supporter, sustainer, sympathizer, upholder, vindicator, votary, well-wisher, whitewasher, wrangler