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Definition of pharisee - 4 dictionary results
Phar⋅i⋅see
[far-uh-see] 
–noun
| 1. | a member of a Jewish sect that flourished during the 1st century b.c. and 1st century a.d. and that differed from the Sadducees chiefly in its strict observance of religious ceremonies and practices, adherence to oral laws and traditions, and belief in an afterlife and the coming of a Messiah. |
| 2. | (lowercase ) a sanctimonious, self-righteous, or hypocritical person. |
Origin:
bef. 900; ME Pharise, Farise, OE Farīsēus < LL Pharīsēus, var. of Pharīsaeus < Gk Pharīsaîos < Aram pərīshayyā, pl. of pərīshā lit., separated
bef. 900; ME Pharise, Farise, OE Farīsēus < LL Pharīsēus, var. of Pharīsaeus < Gk Pharīsaîos < Aram pərīshayyā, pl. of pərīshā lit., separated
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To pharisee
| phar·i·see (fār'ĭ-sē) n.
[Middle English pharise, from Old English fariseus and from Old French pharise, both from Late Latin pharīsaeus, from Greek pharīsaios, from Aramaic pərišayyā, pl. of pəriš, separate, from pəraš, to separate; see prš in Semitic roots.] |
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Pharisee
Phar"i*see\ (f[a^]r"[i^]*s[=e]), n. [L. Pharisaeus, Gr. Farisai^os, from Heb. p[=a]rash to separate.] One of a sect or party among the Jews, noted for a strict and formal observance of rites and ceremonies and of the traditions of the elders, and whose pretensions to superior sanctity led them to separate themselves from the other Jews.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Pharisee
O.E. Fariseos, O.Fr. pharise (13c.), both from L.L. Pharisæus, from Gk. Pharisaios, from Aramaic p'rishayya, emphatic plural of p'rish "separated, separatist," corresponding to Heb. parush, from parash "he separated." Ancient Jewish sect (2c. B.C.E.-1c. C.E.) distinguished by strict observance but regarded as pretentious and self-righteous, at least by Jesus (Matt. xxiii:27). Meaning "self-righteous person, formalist, hypocrite" is attested from 1589.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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