Benedict de Spinoza

9.9

A Dutch philosopher who said God and nature are the same

proper noun
/ˈbɛnɪdɪkt də spɪˈnoʊzə/

: Benedicto de Spinoza

Many scholars regard Benedict de Spinoza as a pioneer in rationalist philosophy.

Examples

The writings of Benedict de Spinoza have greatly influenced modern thinkers.
In his lifetime, Benedict de Spinoza was both admired and criticized for his radical ideas.
Benedict de Spinoza was a great philosopher.
Many consider Benedict de Spinoza to be a pioneer of modern philosophy.
In his lifetime, Benedict de Spinoza was both admired and criticized for his radical ideas.
Many scholars regard Benedict de Spinoza as a pioneer in rationalist philosophy.
The writings of Benedict de Spinoza have greatly influenced modern thinkers.

Synonyms

Spinoza

vsBenedict de Spinoza

7 9.6

A Dutch philosopher who thought God and nature are the same

also includes major contributions to rationalist thought beyond pantheism

Baruch de Spinoza

vsBenedict de Spinoza

9.9

A Dutch philosopher who said God and nature are the same and used reason to explain things

advocates pantheism and is noted for influential rationalist works

Surface Forms

Benedict de Spinoza main

Morphology

Benedict + de + Spinoza

This is a proper name referring to a specific historical person, so its meaning is referential rather than compositionally built from 'Benedict' + 'de' + 'Spinoza'. A B1 learner who knows the individual words (and an unknown particle 'de') would not be able to infer the person’s identity or that he is a Dutch philosopher, so the phrase is opaque.

Etymology

Benedict de Spinoza was a Dutch thinker who earned money grinding lenses, so picture him shaping glass and then looking at the world through new lenses to remember him. He argued that 'God' and nature are the same, so his bold idea changed how people thought about religion and science.