Layman Definition & Meaning | Britannica Dictionary (original) (raw)

Britannica Dictionary definition of LAYMAN

[count]

1

:

a person who is not a member of a particular profession

• For a layman, he knows a lot about the law.
• a medical journal written in language that is clear to the layman [=clear to someone who is not a medical professional]
• The process was explained to us in layman's terms. [=in simple language that anyone can understand]

2

:

a person who belongs to a religion but is not a priest, minister, etc.

• He's an important layman in his church.

— compare laity