DiscipleChristianity: a member of the Disciples of Christ founded in the U.S. in 1809 that holds the Bible alone to be the rule of faith and practice, usually baptizes by immersion, and has a congregational (see congregationalsense 3) polity
follower may apply to people who attach themselves either to the person or beliefs of another.
an evangelist and his followers
adherent suggests a close and persistent attachment.
adherents to Marxism
disciple implies a devoted allegiance to the teachings of one chosen as a master.
disciples of Gandhi
partisan suggests a zealous often prejudiced attachment.
partisans of the President
Examples of disciple in a Sentence
a disciple of Sigmund Freud a circle of dedicated disciples who conscientiously wrote down everything the prophet said
Recent Examples on the Web
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The central and longest section presents the Guru’s grievances against Aurangzeb in the style of a Sufi pir (spiritual guide) addressing a deviant murid (disciple), indicting the emperor for violating the oath and sanctioning the murder of Gobind Singh’s sons.—Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Apr. 2026 This egalitarian, crate-digging ethos makes a lot of sense next to MIKE and Earl Sweatshirt, who’ve fostered years of goodwill from uplifting their own disciples.—Olivier Lafontant, Pitchfork, 6 Apr. 2026 Oh my, Cori, this being a legacy triumph for coach Cori Close, a John Wooden disciple who led through thoughtful motivation instead of mindless screaming.—Los Angeles Times, 5 Apr. 2026 The event commemorates the Last Supper and the day that Jesus washed the feet of His disciples, highlighting the importance of humility, Tatler reported.—Rachel Burchfield, InStyle, 2 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for disciple
Word History
Etymology
Middle English, "follower of Jesus, one of the apostles, pupil," in part going back to Old English discipul, in part borrowed from Anglo-French disciple, both borrowed from Late Latin discipulus "follower of Christ, apostle" (translation of Greek mathētḗs), going back to Latin, "pupil, learner," of uncertain origin
Note: Traditionally explained as a derivative of discere "to learn," but the second element -pulus is neither a known word nor a suffix. According to an alternative explanation, the base is nominalized from an unattested verb *discipere, putatively, "to grasp, comprehend," from dis-dis- and capere "to take, seize" (cf. disceptāre "to dispute, debate," supposedly a frequentative from this verb); this is semantically questionable, however, and -ulus is any case not an agentive suffix.
First Known Use
before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of disciple was before the 12th century
Middle English disciple "one who follows and spreads the teaching of another," from Old English discipul and early French disciple (both, same meaning), from Latin discipulus "follower of Jesus Christ in his lifetime," from earlier discipulus "pupil"