evangelist

noun

evan·​ge·​list i-ˈvan-jə-list 

1

often Evangelist : 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

Bettye Odom enjoyed successful careers as a nurse, model, actress and local talk-show host before embarking on a new journey as a longtime Hyde Park spa owner and evangelist for Black skin care. —Bob Goldsborough, Chicago Tribune, 29 Apr. 2026

Brittin is something of an AI evangelist — a man who has had his nose pressed to the glass of leading-edge AI discoveries from the likes of Demis Hassabis, a fellow Brit who runs the hugely influential Google DeepMind. —Jake Kanter, Deadline, 23 Apr. 2026

The technology intentionally comes lacking a human face, and its evangelists have both over-promised regarding what the tools can do in the short term while worrying people about the long-term societal impacts. —Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 23 Apr. 2026

Both on campus and at home, I am subjected to the advances of evangelists for various causes — not only religious, but also political. —Judith Martin, Mercury News, 22 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th 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"