different between acolyte vs zealot

English

Etymology

Late Middle English, from Old French acolyt and Late Latin acolythus, from Ancient Greek ????????? (akólouthos, “follower, attendant”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?æ.k?.la?t/

Noun

acolyte (plural acolytes)

1. (Christianity) One who has received the highest of the four minor orders in the Catholic Church, being ordained to carry the wine, water and lights at Mass.
2. (Christianity) An altar server.
3. An attendant, assistant or follower.

Synonyms

(assistant): sidekick

Translations

References

• Douglas Harper (2001–2021) , “acolyte”, in Online Etymology Dictionary

Anagrams

• cotylae

French

Alternative forms

• acolythe (obsolete)

Etymology

From Old French acolyt, from Ecclesiastical Latin acolytus, from Ancient Greek ????????? (akólouthos, “follower, attendant”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /a.k?.lit/

Noun

acolyte m (plural acolytes)

1. (religion) acolyte
2. henchman, sidekick

Further reading

• “acolyte” in Trésor de la langue française informatisé (The Digitized Treasury of the French Language).

English

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 z?l?t?s, from Ancient Greek ??????? (z?l?t?s, “emulator, zealous admirer, follower”), from ????? (zêlos, “zeal, jealousy”), from ????? (z?ló?, “to emulate, to be jealous”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?z?l.?t/
• Hyphenation: zeal?ot

Noun

zealot (plural zealots)

1. One who is zealous, one who is full of zeal for his own specific beliefs or objectives, usually in the negative sense of being too passionate; a fanatic
2. (historical) A member of a radical, warlike, ardently patriotic group of Jews in Judea, particularly prominent in the first century, who advocated the violent overthrow of Roman rule and vigorously resisted the efforts of the Romans and their supporters to convert the Jews.
3. (historical) A member of an anti-aristocratic political group in Thessalonica from 1342 until 1350.

Quotations

• 1892: Yet Brahmans rule Benares still, / Buddh-Gaya's ruins pit the hill, / And beef-fed zealots threaten ill / To Buddha and Kamakura. — Rudyard Kipling, Buddha at Kamakura

Synonyms

• enthusiast
• fanatic

Related terms

Translations

Anagrams

• Laotze