zealot

  1. Noun.  one who is zealous, one who is full of zeal for his own specific beliefs or objectives, usually in the negative sense of being ''too'' passionate; a fanatic.
  2. Noun.  a member of a radical, warlike, ardently patriotic group of Jews in Judea, particularly prominent from a.d. 69 to 81, advocating the violent overthrow of Roman rule and vigorously resisting the efforts of the Romans and their supporters to heathenize the Jews.
  3. Noun.  a member of an anti-aristocratic political group in Thessalonica from 1342 until 1350.

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This entry was last updated on RefTopia from its source on 3/20/2012.