philosopher

• phylosopher (obsolete)

From Middle English philosophre, from Anglo-Norman or Middle French philosophe, from Latin philosophus, from Ancient Greek φιλόσοφος (philósophos, literally “lover of wisdom”) + -er.

Credited as having been coined by Pythagoras to describe himself.^[1][2]

Displaced native Old English ūþwita.

• (UK) IPA^(key): /fɪˈlɒs.ə.fə(ɹ)/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• (US) IPA^(key): /fəˈlɑsəfəɹ/

  • Audio (Mid-Atlantic US):

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philosopher (plural philosophers)

1. (originally) A lover of wisdom.
2. A student of philosophy.
3. A scholar or expert engaged in or contributing to philosophical inquiry.

   Hyponyms: see Thesaurus:philosopher

   • 2007, Harold Bloom, Bloom's Modern Critical Views: Stephen King:

     Their playwrights knew better. Scandal, murder, hair-rending and railing against the gods sold tickets. King is not a philosopher. He knows how to sell tickets.

4. (archaic) A person who applies the principles of philosophy to the conduct of their life, as by acting calmly and rationally in the face of inevitable change.
   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 17:18:

     Then certaine Philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoikes, encountred him

   • 1813 January 27, [Jane Austen], Pride and Prejudice: […], volumes (please specify |volume=I to III), London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC:

     This is not the sort of happiness which a man would in general wish to owe to his wife; but where other powers of entertainment are wanting, the true philosopher will derive benefit from such as are given.

5. (archaic) A student, scholar, or expert in any branch of knowledge, especially those branches studied prior to being considered part of pure science.
6. (obsolete) An alchemist.
   • 1813, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales: The Canon's Yeoman's Tale:

     Then thus conclude I, since that God of heaven
     Will not that these philosophers neven
     How that a man shall come unto this stone,
     I rede as for the best to let it gon.

   • 1945, Bertrand Russell, History of Western Philosophy:

     No further progress was made in this science until the Mohammedan alchemists embarked upon their search for the philosopher's stone, the elixir of life, and a method of transmuting base metals into gold.

• misosopher
• philosophaster
• philosophe
• philosophical
• philosophical method
• philosophicide
• philosophizer
• philosophy

• IPA^(key): /fi.lɔ.zɔ.fe/

• Audio:

  (file)

philosopher

1. to philosophize

• “philosopher”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

philosopher

1. first-person singular present active subjunctive of philosophor