Definition of pharisee Pharisee

Phar•i•see

We found 6 definitions of pharisee from 5 different sources.

What does pharisee mean?

Noun Plural: pharisees
pharisee - a self-righteous or sanctimonious person
		disagreeable person, unpleasant person a person who is not pleasant or agreeable
pharisee - a member of an ancient Jewish sect noted for strict obedience to Jewish traditions
		jew, hebrew, israelite a person belonging to the worldwide group claiming descent from Jacob (or converted to it) and connected by cultural or religious ties

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pharisee (Noun)
A person who values the letter of the law over the spirit or intention of the law.

pharisee (n.)
One of a sect or party among the Jews, noted for a strict and formal observance of rites and ceremonies and of the traditions of the elders, and whose pretensions to superior sanctity led them to separate themselves from the other Jews.

pharisee
far′i-sē, n. one of a religious school among the Jews, marked by their strict observance of the law and of religious ordinances: any one more careful of the outward forms than of the spirit of religion, a formalist.—adjs. Pharisā′ic, -al, pertaining to, or like, the Pharisees: hypocritical.—adv. Pharisā′ically.—ns. Pharisā′icalness; Phar′isāism, Phar′iseeism, the practice and opinions of the Pharisees: strict observance of outward forms in religion without the spirit of it: hypocrisy. [Late L. pharisæus—Gr. pharisaios—Heb. pārūsh, separated from, parash, to separate.]