evangelist

noun

evan·​ge·​list i-ˈvan-jə-list 

1

often capitalized : a writer of any of the four Gospels

2

: a person who evangelizes

specifically : a Protestant minister or layman who preaches at special services

3

: an enthusiastic advocate

an evangelist for physical fitness

Examples of evangelist in a Sentence

an evangelist of space exploration

Recent Examples on the Web

The governor is going to the Vatican as an evangelist on climate change and to testify about California’s experience and leadership, said Sean Clegg, a senior political advisor to Newsom. —Taryn Luna, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2024

Like Bickle, both Cain and Jones — not the evangelist who founded Bob Jones University in Greenville, South Carolina — went through scandals of their own. —Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 15 May 2024

Joined by a Cypriot named Barnabas, the evangelist set forth to preach the Gospel to the Jews and gentiles of Pisidia, which had fallen under the control of the Roman Empire. —Joshua Hammer, Smithsonian Magazine, 15 May 2024

By 1980, the party had been taken over by the religious right, led by Jerry Falwell, a television evangelist. —Letters To The Editor, The Mercury News, 14 May 2024

But less obvious is the runner-up — Robert Barron, bishop of Winona-Rochester, online evangelist and founder of Word on Fire Ministries. —Timothy H.j. Nerozzi Fox News, Fox News, 12 May 2024

In January 2021, lifelong Amtrak super user and evangelist Joe Biden was inaugurated as the 46th president of the United States. —Paolo Confino, Fortune, 6 May 2024

Parscale has the financial backing to experiment to see what works in ways that other AI evangelists may not. —Garance Burke, Fortune, 6 May 2024

Editors’ Picks The community has been visited by several U.S. presidents and famous Christian leaders, including the evangelist Billy Graham and the Christian hymn writer Fanny Crosby. —Sarah Pulliam Bailey, New York Times, 12 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

evangelist

noun

evan·​ge·​list i-ˈvan-jə-ləst 

: a Christian preacher who goes about from place to place trying to change or increase people's religious feelings

Etymology

Middle English evangelist "one of the writers of the four Gospels," from early French and Latin evangelista (same meaning), from Greek euangelizein "to preach the gospel," from euangelion "good news, gospel," from eu- "good" and angelos "messenger, angel"