Sadducee

[ saj-uh-see, sad-yuh- ]

nounJudaism.
  1. a member of a Palestinian sect, consisting mainly of priests and aristocrats, that flourished from the 1st century b.c. to the 1st century a.d. and differed from the Pharisees chiefly in its literal interpretation of the Bible, rejection of oral laws and traditions, and denial of an afterlife and the coming of the Messiah.

Origin of Sadducee

1
before 1000; Middle English sadducees (plural), Old English saddūcēas<Late Latin saddūcaeī<Greek saddoukaîoi<Hebrew ṣədhūqī adherent of Zadok

Other words from Sadducee

  • Sad·du·ce·an, adjective
  • Sad·du·cee·ism, noun

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

How to use Sadducee in a sentence

  • These Hellenized Jews, who frequently had their origins in the upper reaches of Judean society, came to be known as the Sadducees.

    Don't Let the Maccabees Win | Matt Lerner | December 4, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • Interestingly, mainstream Jews of the day—the Sadducees—did not believe in any kind of resurrection.

    Who Was Jesus, Anyway? | Jay Parini | December 1, 2013 | THE DAILY BEAST
  • The Sadducees denied the separate existence of spirits; but, in our Savior's famous argument with them.

    Gospel Philosophy | J. H. Ward
  • Certainly the most cultivated and aristocratic sect--the Sadducees--repudiated it altogether; while the Pharisees held to it.

  • The false shepherds, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, were a curse to the people and the leaders were against the Shepherd.

    The Prophet Ezekiel | Arno C. Gaebelein

British Dictionary definitions for Sadducee

Sadducee

/ (ˈsædjʊˌsiː) /


noun
  1. Judaism a member of an ancient Jewish sect that was opposed to the Pharisees, denying the resurrection of the dead, the existence of angels, and the validity of oral tradition

Origin of Sadducee

1
Old English saddūcēas, via Latin and Greek from Late Hebrew sāddūqi, probably from Sadoq Zadok, high priest and supposed founder of the sect

Derived forms of Sadducee

  • Sadducean, adjective
  • Sadduceeism, noun

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