polymath
Definition from Wiktionary, the free dictionary
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[edit] English
[edit] Alternative forms
[edit] Etymology
First attested in 1624; from the Ancient Greek πολυμαθής (polumathēs, “having learnt much”), from πολύς (polus, “much”) + μάθη (mathē, “learning”; from μανθάνω, manthanō “I learn”); compare opsimath, philomath, polyhistor, polymathic, polymathist, and polymathy, as well as the French polymathe.
[edit] Pronunciation
- (RP) enPR: pŏʹlĭmăth, IPA: /ˈpɒlɪmæθ/, SAMPA: /"pQlIm{T/
- (UK) enPR: pŏʹlĭmăth, IPA: /ˈpɒlɪmaθ/, SAMPA: /"pQlImaT/
- (US) enPR: pŏʹlimăth', IPA: /ˈpɑliˌmæθ/, SAMPA: /"pAli%m{T/
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Audio (US) (file)
[edit] Noun
polymath (plural polymaths)
- A person with extraordinarily broad and comprehensive knowledge.
- 1624, Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy (2ⁿᵈ ed.), page 6
- To be thought and held Polumathes and Polihistors.
- 1624, Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy (2ⁿᵈ ed.), page 6
[edit] Synonyms
[edit] Related terms
[edit] Coordinate terms
[edit] Translations
Person with extraordinarily broad and comprehensive knowledge
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[edit] References
- “polymath, n. (a.)” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary [2ⁿᵈ ed., 1989]
- “polymath, n. and adj.” listed in the Oxford English Dictionary [3ʳᵈ ed., September 2006]