zealot

Definition

One who is zealous, one who is full of zeal for their own specific beliefs or objectives, usually in the negative sense of being too passionate; a fanatic.

Etymology

Initially only found as Middle English zelote, an epithet of Simon the Zealot, acquiring its current senses in the 16th and 17th centuries. The Middle English derives from Latin zēlōtēs, from Ancient Greek ζηλωτής (zēlōtḗs, “emulator, zealous admirer, follower”), from ζηλόω (zēlóō, “to emulate, to be jealous”), from ζῆλος (zêlos, “zeal, jealousy”).

Example Sentences

• "For Modes of Faith let graceleſs zealots fight; / His can't be wrong whoſe life is in the right:"

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