apologist

[ uh-pol-uh-jist ]

See synonyms for apologist on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person who makes a defense in speech or writing of a belief, idea, etc.
Ecclesiastical.
- Also a·pol·o·gete [uh-pol-uh-jeet]. /əˈpɒl əˌdʒit/. a person skilled in apologetics.
- one of the authors of the early Christian apologies in defense of the faith.

Origin of apologist

First recorded in 1630–40; either from apolog(y) + -ist or from French apologiste

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use apologist in a sentence

Bush apologists, as always, are ready with excuses, like playing the Terrorism Card.
Assuming GOP Does Take the Senate, Dems Have Nothing to Fear | Veronique de Rugy | November 1, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Of course, life for these all All-Pro apologists has gotten a bit more uncomfortable in the past few days.
Forget the Wife Beating—Are You Ready for Some Football? | Steve Almond | September 11, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
Apologists typically have a field day with such explanations.
Do We Know if There Was Really An Empty Tomb? | Bart D. Ehrman | April 19, 2014 | THE DAILY BEAST
This battle between individual corruption and institutional corruption is not limited to the apologists for the current system.
Congress Can Be Corrupt Without Corrupt People | Lawrence Lessig | December 13, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
The apologists for plutocracy are content this week to use anti-racism as their debating tool.
You Can't Wish Away the Facts About Immigration Amnesty | David Frum | May 9, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST

That is a strange statement to make, but it is an example of the shifts to which apologists are frequently reduced.
God and my Neighbour | Robert Blatchford
One would think, to read the Christian apologists, that before the advent of Christianity the world had neither virtue nor wisdom.
God and my Neighbour | Robert Blatchford
The apologists of religion repeat to us every day that the passions alone create unbelievers.
Superstition In All Ages (1732) | Jean Meslier
You shall know all that is in my heart pertaining to Slavery, its supporters, and apologists.
No Compromise with Slavery | William Lloyd Garrison
There were not wanting apologists to place the true position of Catholics before the nation.
The War Upon Religion | Rev. Francis A. Cunningham

British Dictionary definitions for apologist

apologist

/ (əˈpɒlədʒɪst) /

noun

a person who offers a defence by argument

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

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