Did you know?
Among the ancient Romans, a novice (novicius) was usually a newly enslaved person, who had to be trained in his or her duties. Among Catholics and Buddhists, if you desire to become a priest, monk, or nun, you must serve as a novice for a period of time, often a year (called your novitiate), before being ordained or fully professing your vows. No matter what kind of novice you are—at computers, at writing, at politics, etc.—you've got a lot to learn.
Synonyms
Examples of novice in a Sentence
Novices serve time as scullery serfs as they work toward the privilege of trailing a pastry chef …
—
Guy Trebay, New York Times, 4 Sept. 2002
For the novice, walking the course also means being scared senseless by all the possibilities to screw up.
—Tim Keown, ESPN, 17 Sept. 2001
Yet it's obvious to him and everyone else who the novice is here, the book-learned tournament virgin.
—James McManus, Harper's, December 2000
Much defter than one would have thought possible from the length of her fingernails, Toula had no fear of high fast notes; her flair, mounted between Andrea's perfectionist reserve and Alice's novice awkwardness, seemed all too displayed.
—John Updike, The Afterlife, 1994
He's a novice in cooking.
a book for the novice chess player
Guy Trebay, New York Times, 4 Sept. 2002
For the novice, walking the course also means being scared senseless by all the possibilities to screw up.
—Tim Keown, ESPN, 17 Sept. 2001
Yet it's obvious to him and everyone else who the novice is here, the book-learned tournament virgin.
—James McManus, Harper's, December 2000
Much defter than one would have thought possible from the length of her fingernails, Toula had no fear of high fast notes; her flair, mounted between Andrea's perfectionist reserve and Alice's novice awkwardness, seemed all too displayed.
—John Updike, The Afterlife, 1994
He's a novice in cooking.
a book for the novice chess player
Recent Examples on the Web
Campfire Ranch Red Mountain Pass is an ideal choice for novices.
—Margaret Jackson, The Denver Post, 13 Nov. 2024
For novices, writing sterile code to make lively games presents a challenging mental puzzle.
—PCMAG, 28 Oct. 2024
Number of Shades: Four Finishes: Shimmer, satin, matte Best For: The simple prime, define, pop, and smoke system will appeal to any palette novice, while the Pillow Talk shades, in particular, are perfect at a dinner for two.
—Jenny Berg, Vogue, 19 Oct. 2024
In his reelection campaign, De León is facing off against Ysabel Jurado, a Filipina American political novice who placed first in the March primary ahead of De León and two Latino Assembly members.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for novice 
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Margaret Jackson, The Denver Post, 13 Nov. 2024
For novices, writing sterile code to make lively games presents a challenging mental puzzle.
—PCMAG, 28 Oct. 2024
Number of Shades: Four Finishes: Shimmer, satin, matte Best For: The simple prime, define, pop, and smoke system will appeal to any palette novice, while the Pillow Talk shades, in particular, are perfect at a dinner for two.
—Jenny Berg, Vogue, 19 Oct. 2024
In his reelection campaign, De León is facing off against Ysabel Jurado, a Filipina American political novice who placed first in the March primary ahead of De León and two Latino Assembly members.
—Gustavo Arellano, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for novice
Dictionary Entries Near novice
Cite this Entry
“Novice.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/novice. Accessed 3 Dec. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
novice
noun
nov·ice
ˈnäv-əs 
1
: a new member of a religious order who is preparing to take the vows of religion
2
: a person who has no previous experience with something
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share