Exegete

//ˈɛksɪˌd͡ʒit// noun, verb

noun, verb ·Uncommon ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    A person skilled in exegesis; an interpreter of texts, difficult passages, law, oracles, and similar obscure or esoteric sources.

    "A text that could not speak to the present was dead, and the exegete had a duty to revive it."

  2. 2
    a person skilled in exegesis (especially of religious texts) wordnet
Verb
  1. 1
    (chiefly religion) To interpret; to perform an exegesis on. transitive

    "History, not the dictionary, must exegete this doctrine. When thus exegeted, the secularity of our Government, as shown by the intentions of its founders, the customs of the people, and the continuous decisions of the courts, means simply the separation of church and state."

Synonyms

All synonyms
commentatorcriticcryptologistdemonstratoreditorexegesist

Example

More examples

"A text that could not speak to the present was dead, and the exegete had a duty to revive it."

Etymology

From Ancient Greek ἐξηγητής (exēgētḗs, “expounder, interpreter”).

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.