azymite

English

Etymology

From Latin azȳmita, from Ancient Greek ἀζῡμίτης (azūmítēs), from ἄζῡμος (ázūmos)[1] + -ῑ́της (-ī́tēs, suffix forming masculine nouns meaning being connected to or a member of something, or coming from a particular place). ἄζῡμος is derived from ᾰ̓- (a-, the alpha privativum, a prefix forming words having a sense opposite to the word or stem to which it is attached) + ζύμη (zúmē, “leaven, yeast”) + -ος (-os, suffix forming nouns of result or abstract nouns of action). The English word is analysable as a- +‎ zymo- +‎ -ite or azyme +‎ -ite.

Pronunciation

(Received Pronunciation, General American) IPA^(key): /ˈæzɪmaɪt/
Hyphenation: azy‧mite

Noun

azymite (plural azymites)

(Eastern Orthodoxy, historical, derogatory) One who administers the Eucharist with unleavened bread, in particular a member of the Latin Church or Roman Catholic Church.
Antonyms: fermentarian, prozymite
- 1843, Catherine Charlotte Maberly, Melanthe; or, The Days of the Medici: A Tale of the Fifteenth Century, volume 1, page 248:
  “Shall we drink a cup in honour of the Holy Virgin, and confusion to the Azymites?” / “Yes, yes! shouted the multitude. “Away with the Azymites—we want no new religion here;” and, singing and shouting, they threw up their caps in the air, […]
- 1898, Joseph Epiphane Darras; Martin John Spalding; Charles Ignatius White, A General History of the Catholic Church: From the Commencement of the Christian Era to the Twentieth Century, volume 3, page 602:
  “Away with them!” cried the Greeks; “we want no Latin allies! Away with the worship of the azymites!”
- 1916, Rothay Reynolds, My Slav Friends, page 15:
  Moreover, the Azymites were often guilty of another monstrous crime: they fasted judaistically on Saturdays.

Usage notes

The word was used pejoratively by some members of the Eastern Orthodox Church to refer to members of the Latin Church or Roman Catholic Church.

Alternative forms

Azymite

Translations

one who administers the Eucharist with unleavened bread

French: azymite (fr) m

References

“Azymite, n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1885; “Azymite” (US) / “Azymite” (UK) in Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press.