Basic Details
Word: Philosopher
Part of Speech: Noun
Meaning: A person who thinks deeply about big questions such as what is true, what is right and how we should live.
Synonyms: thinker, sage
Word origin: From Greek philosophos, lover of wisdom.
How to Spell Philosopher
Syllables: phi - los - o - pher
Tricky part: There are two ph's, one at the start and one near the end, and both sound like f. The vowel after los is o.
Watch out for: philosofer, filosopher, philosipher, phylosopher
Memory tip: Philo means love and soph means wise, so a philosopher is a lover of wisdom. Each part brings its own ph.
Usage Examples
Example 1: The philosopher asked his students whether a promise made in anger still counts.
Example 2: My grandfather is a bit of a philosopher and loves to talk about the meaning of life.
Example 3: Thiruvalluvar, the Tamil poet, is also honoured as a great philosopher.
Fun Fact
Socrates, one of the best-known Greek philosophers, wrote no books; most of what we know about his ideas comes from his pupil Plato.
Practise the CREST Way
Mingle-Mangle
Rearrange the jumbled letters in the sentence to form the right word:
The old olhpsrehipo sat under the banyan tree, answering questions about life.
a) philosopher
b) philologist
c) psychologist
d) photographer
Show answer
a) philosopher. Photographer needs a t and a g, and the other two need a g as well; the jumble has none of these.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
phillosopher
a) p
b) h
c) l
d) s
Show answer
c) l. Philo has just one l, as in Philip.
Spell-o-Spell
One word in the list is misspelt. Choose what that word means.
1. scientist 2. philosofer 3. historian 4. astronomer
a) a person who thinks deeply about life, truth and knowledge
b) a person who studies the past
c) a person who studies the stars and planets
d) a person who studies science
Show answer
a) a person who thinks deeply about life, truth and knowledge. The other three are spelt properly; philosopher has lost its second ph to an f.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which question would a philosopher most likely spend years thinking about?
a) What makes an action right or wrong?
b) How much does this school bag cost?
c) What time does the next train leave?
d) Where is the nearest post office?
Show answer
a) What makes an action right or wrong?
2. The ancient Greek philosopher who taught the young Alexander the Great was ____.
a) Aristotle
b) Homer
c) Pythagoras
d) Archimedes
Show answer
a) Aristotle
