What does "sophisticate" mean?
A person who is sophisticated (“experienced in the ways of the world, that is, cosmopolitan or worldly-wise”), or who has sophisticated tastes.
Sophisticate
/səˈfɪstɪkeɪt/ adj, noun, verb
adj, noun, verb ·Moderate ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A person who is sophisticated (“experienced in the ways of the world, that is, cosmopolitan or worldly-wise”), or who has sophisticated tastes.
- Grammar: sophisticate is listed as adj, noun, verb.
- Nearest alternatives: adulterate, adulterate, aesthete, aficionado.
- Useful contrasts: naif, uncultured, unsophisticated.
- Usage evidence: The party to which Mrs. Berlinton was the loadſtone, was far more attractive to the diſciples of nature, though leſs ſedulouſly ſought by thoſe whom the manners and maxims of the common world had ſophiſticated.
How to use "sophisticate"
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Meaning check
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Source and review context
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Before you rely on this definition
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Compare nearby meanings
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Definition decision workflow
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Definitions
Noun
- 1 A person who is sophisticated (“experienced in the ways of the world, that is, cosmopolitan or worldly-wise”), or who has sophisticated tastes.
"[…] the soporific details of Porter's socially correct marriage of convenience to wealthy and somewhat enigmatic Linda, "a professional beauty." They evidently shared a taste for high social status and the elegant luxuries, high life and freedoms afforded by wealth. Linda and Cole are portrayed as the ultimate sophisticates but the viewer is never told the cause for their separation or why they married."
- 2 a worldly-wise person wordnet
Verb
- 1 To make (something) less innocent or natural; to artificialize. transitive
"The party to which Mrs. Berlinton was the loadſtone, was far more attractive to the diſciples of nature, though leſs ſedulouſly ſought by thoſe whom the manners and maxims of the common world had ſophiſticated."
- 2 make more complex or refined wordnet
- 3 To make (something) more sophisticated (“complex, developed, or refined”); to develop, to refine. transitive
- 4 alter and make impure, as with the intention to deceive wordnet
- 5 To make (oneself or someone) more sophisticated (“experienced in the ways of the world, that is, cosmopolitan or worldly-wise”); to cosmopolitanize. also, reflexive, transitive
Show 6 more definitions
- 6 practice sophistry; change the meaning of or be vague about in order to mislead or deceive wordnet
- 7 To alter and make impure (something) by mixing it with some foreign or inferior substance, especially with an intention to deceive; to adulterate; (generally) to corrupt or deceive (someone, their thinking, etc.). also, figuratively, transitive
"How be it, it were harde to construe this lecture; Sophisticatid craftely is many a confecture; […]"
- 8 make less natural or innocent wordnet
- 9 To change the meaning of (something) in a deceptive or misleading way. transitive
"The heavy hand of the high Thunderer Shall light on thee; and thou I doubt ſhalt be His Furies object, and ſhalt teſtifie By thine infamous lifes accurſed ſtate, VVhat now thy ſhame-leſs lips ſophiſticate."
- 10 To apply an artificial technique to (something). archaic, transitive
"[T]hey ſit in ſome ſun-ſhining place in a chamber or ſome other ſecret roome, where hauing a looking-glaſſe before them they ſophiſticate and dye their haire with the foreſaid drugs, […]"
- 11 To practise sophistry (“the (deliberate) making of arguments that seem plausible but are fallacious or misleading”). intransitive
"The benevolence of her heart taught her, in this inſtance, to ſophiſticate."
Adjective
- 1 Synonym of sophisticated (adjective).; Of a person: experienced in the ways of the world; cosmopolitan, worldly-wise.
- 2 Synonym of sophisticated (adjective).; Of art or other things: appealing to the tastes of an intellectual or sophisticated (sense 1.1) person; cerebral; also, cultured, elegant, refined.
- 3 Synonym of sophisticated (adjective).; Mixed with a foreign or inferior substance; not genuine or pure; adulterated, impure. obsolete
"So truth, while only one ſupply'd the ſtate, Grew ſcarce, and dear, and yet ſophiſticate."
- 4 Synonym of sophisticated (adjective).; Of a thing: having its meaning changed in a deceptive or misleading way. obsolete
Antonyms
Example
"The party to which Mrs. Berlinton was the loadſtone, was far more attractive to the diſciples of nature, though leſs ſedulouſly ſought by thoſe whom the manners and maxims of the common world had ſophiſticated."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "sophisticate"?
Common synonyms include: adulterate, adulterate, aesthete, aficionado, aggravate, blase.
How do you use "sophisticate" in a sentence?
The party to which Mrs. Berlinton was the loadſtone, was far more attractive to the diſciples of nature, though leſs ſedulouſly ſought by thoſe whom the manners and maxims of the common world had ſophiſticated.
How do you pronounce "sophisticate"?
Pronounced /səˈfɪstɪkeɪt/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
From Middle English sophisticaten (“to mix (something) with a foreign or inferior substance, adulterate”), from Medieval Latin sophisticātus, the perfect passive participle of sophisticāre (“to disguise; to tamper with; to trick using words”) (see -ate (verb-forming suffix) for more). Sophisticāre is derived from Latin sophisticus (“pertaining to the ancient Sophists, sophistic; pertaining to sophistry, sophistic, sophistical”) (from Ancient Greek σοφιστικός (sophistikós), from σοφιστής (sophistḗs, “master of a craft; prudent or wise person; philosopher; teacher, tutor; (derogatory) one who profits from false wisdom, cheat, swindler”), from σοφός (sophós, “able, skilful; clever, intelligent, prudent, wise; cunning”), further etymology unknown) + -ō (first conjugation verb-forming suffix). Cognates * French sophistiquer * Italian sofisticare * Spanish sofisticar
Etymology 2
From Middle English sophisticat, sophisticate (“adulterated; not genuine, counterfeit”), an adjective use of the past participle of sophisticaten (verb) See Etymology 1 and -ate (adjective-forming suffix) for more.
Etymology 3
From a substantivation of the above adjective or back-formation of the verb, either on the basis of -ate (noun-forming suffix).