# philosopher
## English
### Alternative forms

* phylosopher (obsolete)

### Etymology

From Middle English philosophre, from Anglo-Norman or Middle French philosophe, from Latin philosophus, from Ancient Greek φιλόσοφος (philósophos, literally “lover of wisdom”) + -er.
Credited as having been coined by Pythagoras to describe himself.
Displaced native Old English ūþwita.

### Pronunciation

* (UK) IPA: /fɪˈlɒs.ə.fə(ɹ)/
** Audio (Southern England):(file)
* (US) IPA: /fəˈlɑsəfəɹ/
** Audio (Mid-Atlantic US):(file)

### Noun

philosopher (plural philosophers)
* (originally) A lover of wisdom.
* A student of philosophy.
* A scholar or expert engaged in or contributing to philosophical inquiry.
    Hyponyms: see Thesaurus:philosopher
** 2007, Harold Bloom, Bloom's Modern Critical Views: Stephen King:Their playwrights knew better. Scandal, murder, hair-rending and railing against the gods sold tickets. King is not a philosopher. He knows how to sell tickets.
* (archaic) A person who applies the principles of philosophy to the conduct of their life, as by acting calmly and rationally in the face of inevitable change.
** 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Acts 17:18:Then certaine Philosophers of the Epicureans, and of the Stoikes, encountred him
** 1813 January 27, [Jane Austen], Pride and Prejudice: […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), London: […] [George Sidney] for T[homas] Egerton, […], →OCLC:This is not the sort of happiness which a man would in general wish to owe to his wife; but where other powers of entertainment are wanting, the true philosopher will derive benefit from such as are given.
* (archaic) A student, scholar, or expert in any branch of knowledge, especially those branches studied prior to being considered part of pure science.
* (obsolete) An alchemist.
** 1813, Geoffrey Chaucer, The Canterbury Tales: The Canon's Yeoman's Tale:Then thus conclude I, since that God of heaven Will not that these philosophers neven How that a man shall come unto this stone, I rede as for the best to let it gon.
** 1945, Bertrand Russell, History of Western Philosophy:No further progress was made in this science until the Mohammedan alchemists embarked upon their search for the philosopher's stone, the elixir of life, and a method of transmuting base metals into gold.

#### Derived terms

* analytic philosopher
* antiphilosopher
* biophilosopher
* ecophilosopher
* ethnophilosopher
* fire philosopher
* foolosopher
* geophilosopher
* macaroni philosopher
* metaphilosopher
* natural philosopher
* neurophilosopher
* nonphilosopher
* philosopher by fire
* philosopheress
* philosopher king, philosopher-king
* philosopher of fire
* philosopher's game
* philosophership
* philosopher's lamp
* philosopher's stone
* philosophers' stone
* philosopher's wool
* philosophess
* philosophress
* pseudophilosopher

#### Related terms

* misosopher
* philosophaster
* philosophe
* philosophical
* philosophical method
* philosophicide
* philosophizer
* philosophy

#### Translations
### References

* ↑ Attributed dates to Roman antiquity: Cicero, Tusculan Disputations, 5.3.8-9 = Heraclides Ponticus fr. 88 Wehrli, Diogenes Laertius 1.12, 8.8, Iamblichus VP 58.
* ↑ This view has been challenged by Walter Burkert, but it has been defended by C.J. De Vogel, Pythagoras and Early Pythagoreanism (1966), pp. 97–102, and C. Riedweg, Pythagoras: His Life, Teaching, And Influence (2005), p. 92.

## French
### Pronunciation

* IPA: /fi.lɔ.zɔ.fe/
* Audio:(file)

### Verb

philosopher
* to philosophize

#### Conjugation
### Further reading

* “philosopher”, in Trésor de la langue française informatisé [Digitized Treasury of the French Language], 2012.

## Latin
### Verb

philosopher
* first-person singular present active subjunctive of philosophor