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Glite Dictionary
Anselm of Canterbury

Anselm of Canterbury

1 9.9
A medieval monk who became Archbishop of Canterbury and argued for God's existence
  • proper noun
: Anselmo de Canterbury
  • Anselm of Canterbury is remembered for developing the ontological argument for the existence of God.

Examples

  • Many scholars consider Anselm of Canterbury one of the key figures in medieval philosophy.

  • The writings of Anselm of Canterbury remain influential in Christian theology today.

  • Did Anselm of Canterbury really argue for the existence of God?

  • The philosopher Anselm of Canterbury made significant contributions to theology.

  • Anselm of Canterbury is remembered for developing the ontological argument for the existence of God.

  • Many scholars consider Anselm of Canterbury one of the key figures in medieval philosophy.

  • The writings of Anselm of Canterbury remain influential in Christian theology today.

Synonyms

Anselm
vsAnselm of Canterbury
1 9.9

A medieval Italian monk and church leader who served as Archbishop of Canterbury

emphasizes his influential argument rather than only a general biography
Saint Anselm
vsAnselm of Canterbury
1 9.5

A medieval monk and philosopher who argued that God exists

uses the formal office name instead of a saintly title
St. Anselm
vsAnselm of Canterbury
1 9.9

A medieval Italian thinker and church leader who argued that reason shows God's existence

uses the formal office name rather than a saintly title

Surface Forms

Anselm of Canterbury main

Morphology

Anselm + of + Canterbury

The phrase is fully compositional: 'Anselm' (a person's name) + 'of' (indicating association or origin) + 'Canterbury' (a place) yields 'the person Anselm associated with Canterbury'. This structure is a standard, cross-linguistic genitive/locative construction, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents will understand the meaning.

Etymology

Anselm of Canterbury was an Italian monk who became Archbishop of Canterbury in England. He is best known for a simple, clever idea: he said that if you can imagine the greatest possible being, then that being must exist, so he is remembered for an 'argument for the existence of God'.