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nonspecialist

nonspecialist

1 4.4
Easy to understand without expert knowledge
  • adjective
  • /ˌnɒnˈspɛʃəlɪst/
: no especialista
  • Her book introduces complex ideas in a way that is accessible to nonspecialist readers.
  • nonspecialist teachers
  • nonspecialist audience
  • nonspecialist public

Examples

  • I have chosen to omit diacritical marks for Sanskrit terms in order to make this essay more legible to nonspecialist readers

    Academic text (2008)
  • Our dialogues will need to focus on topics suitable for an educated but nonspecialist audience.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The pupils with the nonspecialist teachers were playing more global ball games, where not all children were actively involved.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The fourteen nonspecialist teachers were asked to give one 20-minute lesson to their own class of children.

    Academic text (1995)
  • The instructional behavior of the specialist and the nonspecialist teachers was characterized by a general information content.

    Academic text (1995)
  • Deans of leading engineering schools were surveyed to determine the level of environmental curriculum offered to nonspecialist engineering students.

    Academic text (1998)
  • A related issue, which arose early in the project's formulation, was whether the report should include only those indicators that a nonspecialist audience would already be familiar with.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Roughly 20 percent of our list consists of trade books—that is, books for a broad, nonspecialist audience, whether written by scholars or others," says Alan G. Thomas, editorial director of humanities and social sciences for the press.

    Academic text (2011)
  • The lecture was designed for a nonspecialist audience to help them understand basic concepts in science.

  • He explained the topic clearly, ensuring even nonspecialist listeners could follow along.

Synonyms

unskilled
vsnonspecialist
14 1.9

A job that does not need special training

describes lack of subject expertise rather than low job ability
nontechnical
vsnonspecialist
1 3.5

Easy to understand for people without special training

refers to people without subject expertise rather than only simplifying terms
unspecialized
vsnonspecialist
1 5.4

Not made for one special purpose and useful in many ways

focuses on people lacking knowledge or training rather than design features
nonspecialized
vsnonspecialist
1 4.1

Not limited to one area or skill and useful in many situations

applies to lack of required subject expertise rather than broad scope

Antonyms

267 3.9

A person who knows a lot about one area of work or study

165 3.5

Very skilled and knowing a lot about a particular area

How Specialized

expert
165 3.5
specialized
  • US
88 5.4
nonspecialist
1 4.4
general
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

nonspecialist positive

Morphology

nonspecialist = specialist (transparent) = non + special + ist

The meaning is directly compositional: 'non-' negates 'specialist', yielding 'not a specialist'.

Etymology

Nonspecialist is built from non- meaning 'not' and specialist (from special, meaning 'needing special skill'). So, a nonspecialist adjective describes something made for people who are 'not experts' and does not need expert knowledge.