polymath

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English

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English Wikipedia has an article on:
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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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Learned borrowing from Ancient Greek πολυμαθής (polumathḗs, having learnt much), first attested in 1624. From πολύς (polús, much) + μανθάνω (manthánō, to learn). Compare opsimath, philomath, polyhistor, polymathic, polymathist, and polymathy. By surface analysis, poly- +‎ math.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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polymath (plural polymaths)

  1. A person with extraordinarily broad and comprehensive knowledge.
    Synonyms: polyhistor, Renaissance man
    Coordinate terms: automath, monomath, opsimath
    • 1624, Robert Burton, The Anatomy of Melancholy (2nd edn.), p.6:
      To be thought and held Polumathes and Polihistors.
    • 2021 December 29, Stephen Roberts, “Stories and facts behind railway plaques”, in RAIL, number 947, page 56:
      A bit of a polymath, he was crucial in the early development of the railways in this country.

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Translations

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References

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