Definition of ESOTERIC (original) (raw)
1
a
: designed for or understood by the specially initiated alone
a body of esoteric legal doctrine—
B. N. Cardozo
b
: requiring or exhibiting knowledge that is restricted to a small group
broadly : difficult to understand
2
a
: limited to a small circle
engaging in esoteric pursuits
3
: of special, rare, or unusual interest
esoteric building materials
Did you know?
The opposite of esoteric is exoteric, which means "suitable to be imparted to the public." According to one account, those who were deemed worthy to attend the Greek philosopher Aristotle's learned discussions were known as his "esoterics," his confidants, while those who merely attended his popular evening lectures were called his "exoterics." Since material that is geared toward a target audience is often not as easily comprehensible to outside observers, esoteric acquired an extended meaning of "difficult to understand." Both esoteric and exoteric started appearing in English in the 17th century; esoteric traces back to ancient Greek by way of the Late Latin esotericus. The Greek esōterikos is based on the comparative form of esō, which means "within."
Synonyms
Examples of esoteric in a Sentence
A kahuna is a master of Hawaiian esoteric practices. Recently, Mariko Gordon and Hugh Cosman engaged a kahuna to bless their house. … —Alec Wilkinson, New Yorker, 7 Oct. 2002 … he listens to a group of Malaysians playing reedy, plangent music on some esoteric kind of wind instrument. —Penelope Lively, City of the Mind, 1991 There was a new mall, an excellent bookstore with esoteric literary and policy journals, some restaurants with cosmopolitan menus, and engaging real estate advertisements. —Robert D. Kaplan, An Empire Wilderness, 1988
metaphysics is such an esoteric subject that most people are content to leave it to the philosophers must have had some esoteric motive for leaving his art collection to a museum halfway around the globe
Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
One of London’s most iconic esoteric shops, Watkins, has an entire section dedicated to cards, while Treadwell’s, another destination store for the occult, makes a trade out of unusual or collectable second-hand decks. —Nina-Sophia Miralles, Forbes, 30 Oct. 2024 To that end, Bach often pursued esoteric symbolism and numerology, with vocal lines crossing in the music when Christ is mentioned, and the like. —Jan Swafford, The Atlantic, 29 Oct. 2024 Objects such as esoteric masks, alongside 1960s Martin Visser sofas, add to the wonderfully surreal atmosphere. —Delilah Khomo, theweek, 16 Oct. 2024 Read the full Pisces Daily Horoscope Aries (March 21 - April 19) Exploring the esoteric? —USA TODAY, 15 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for esoteric 
Word History
Etymology
Late Latin esotericus, from Greek esōterikos, from esōterō, comparative of eisō, esō within, from eis into; akin to Greek en in — more at in
First Known Use
circa 1660, in the meaning defined at sense 1a
Time Traveler
The first known use of esoteric was circa 1660
Dictionary Entries Near esoteric
Cite this Entry
“Esoteric.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/esoteric. Accessed 12 Nov. 2024.
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Last Updated: 5 Nov 2024 - Updated example sentences
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