Zoilist, n.

zoilist
http://www.oed.com/dictionary/zoilist_n%3Ftab%3Dmeaning_and_use
First published 1921; not fully revised

# Zoilistnoun

## Factsheet

### What does the noun Zoilist mean?

There is one meaning in OED's entry for the noun Zoilist. See ‘Meaning & use’ for definition, usage, and quotation evidence.

#### Entry status

OED is undergoing a continuous programme of revision to modernize and improve definitions. This entry has not yet been fully revised.

### How common is the noun Zoilist?

Fewer than 0.01occurrences per million words in modern written English

1820 | 0.0007
1830 | 0.0005
1840 | 0.0005
1850 | 0.0004
1860 | 0.0006
1870 | 0.0004
1880 | 0.0004
1890 | 0.0004
1900 | 0.0004
1910 | 0.0004
1920 | 0.0004
1930 | 0.0003
1940 | 0.0003
1950 | 0.0002
1960 | 0.0001
1970 | 0.0001
1980 | 0.0001
1990 | 0.0001
2000 | 0.00008
2010 | 0.00009

### Where does the noun Zoilist come from?

Earliest known use

late 1500s

The earliest known use of the noun Zoilist is in the late 1500s.

OED's earliest evidence for Zoilist is from 1594, in the writing of Thomas Nashe, writer.

### Nearby entries

1. Zohar, n. 1682–
2. zoic, adj. 1863–
3. -zoic, comb. form¹
4. -zoic, comb. form²
5. zoid, n. 1856–
6. zoid, adj. 1864–
7. zoidiophilous, adj. 1872–
8. zoidogamous, adj. 1899–
9. Zoilean, adj. 1846–
10. Zoilism, n. 1609–
11. Zoilist, n.1594–
12. Zoilitical, adj. 1665
13. Zoilous, adj. 1577–
14. Zoilus, n. 1565–
15. zoisite, n. 1805–
16. zoism, n. 1900–
17. zoist, n. 1843–
18. zoistic, adj. 1849–
19. zoite, n. 1963–
20. -zoite, comb. form
21. zol, n. 1946–

## Meaning & use

1. 1594–
   An imitator of Zoilus, a carping critic.
   Stressed as ˈZoilist.
   1. 1594

      > The ploddinger sort of vnlearned Zoilists about London, exclaim, that it is a puft-up stile.

      T. Nashe, Christs Teares (new edition) To Reader
   2. 1694

      > Some prevaricating Zoilist will arraign my Hypothesis.

      R. Franck, Northern Memoirs Preface p. xxvii
   3. 1716

      > Polydore Virgil, Dr. John Cay, with other Zoilists, reported that his Poetical Wit made him so conceited.

      M. Davies, Athenæ Britannicæ vol. II. 87
   4. a1849

      > The same class of fastidious wits who in France became Zoilists, in England were the stoutest stickers to Homer.

      H. Coleridge, Essays & Marginalia (1851) vol. II. 75
   1. plucker-at c1500
      A person who plucks someone or something (in various senses of the verb). Also with adverbs.
   2. pick-fault 1544–
      a. n. A fault-finder; †b. adj. fault-finding (Obsolete).
   3. pick mote 1549
      A person who draws attention to trivial faults in others (in 1549 as part of a humorous, mocking title).
   4. trip-taker 1556
      One who ‘takes another in a trip’, a fault-finder.
   5. mome 1563–1676
      A carping critic.
   6. Momus 1563–
      a. The Greek god of censure and ridicule, who was banished from Olympus for his criticisms of the gods; (also) a representation of the god. b. A…
   7. Zoilus 1565–
      Name of a Greek critic and grammarian (4th century b.c.) famous for his severe criticism of Homer; transferred (with plural Zoili, Zoiluses), a…
   8. find-fault 1567–
      A person who finds fault (see fault, n. 6); a fault-finder, a censorious person.
   9. caviller 1574–
      One who cavils; a captious or frivolous objector, a quibbling disputant.
   10. carper 1579–
       One who carps. A fault-finder, a caviller, a captious critic.
   11. sheep-biter?1589–1778
       figurative. a. ? A malicious or censorious fellow. b. A shifty, sneaking, or thievish fellow. Cf. sheep-biting, n. Obsolete.
   12. Zoilist 1594–
       An imitator of Zoilus, a carping critic.
   13. momist 1597–1641
       A person who habitually finds fault; a harsh critic.
   14. word-catcher 1659–
       a. A person who catches or cavils at words, a petty or carping critic (now rare); b. a person who catches or makes a collection of words.
   15. knocker 1898–
       A fault-finder, one who is much given to captious criticism. (Cf. knock, v. 2g) colloquial (originally U.S.).
   16. crabber 1909–
       One who finds fault or criticizes adversely.
   17. kvetch 1936–
       A detestable or unpleasant person; esp. a person who criticizes or complains a great deal.
   18. tearer-downer 1942–
       One who tears down, a carping critic (cf. tear, v.¹ I.3h).
   19. nitpicker 1951–
       A pedantic critic; a petty fault-finder.
   20. kvetcher 1968–
       = kvetch, n. 1.
   View in Historical Thesaurus

## Frequency

Zoilist typically occurs fewer than 0.01 times per million words in modern written English.

Zoilist is in frequency band 1, which contains words occurring fewer than 0.001 times per million words in modern written English. More about OED's frequency bands

Frequency data is computed programmatically, and should be regarded as an estimate.

### Frequency of Zoilist, n., 1820–2010

* Occurrences per million words in written English

Historical frequency series are derived from Google Books Ngrams (version 2), a data set based on the Google Books corpus of several million books printed in English between 1500 and 2010.

The overall frequency for a given word is calculated by summing frequencies for the main form of the word, any plural or inflected forms, and any major spelling variations.

For sets of homographs (distinct entries that share the same word-form, e.g. mole, n.¹, mole, n.², mole, n.³, etc.), we have estimated the frequency of each homograph entry as a fraction of the total Ngrams frequency for the word-form. This may result in inaccuracies.

Smoothing has been applied to series for lower-frequency words, using a moving-average algorithm. This reduces short-term fluctuations, which may be produced by variability in the content of the Google Books corpus.

Decade | Frequency per million words
--- | ---
1820 | 0.0007
1830 | 0.0005
1840 | 0.0005
1850 | 0.0004
1860 | 0.0006
1870 | 0.0004
1880 | 0.0004
1890 | 0.0004
1900 | 0.0004
1910 | 0.0004
1920 | 0.0004
1930 | 0.0003
1940 | 0.0003
1950 | 0.0002
1960 | 0.0001
1970 | 0.0001
1980 | 0.0001
1990 | 0.0001
2000 | 0.00008
2010 | 0.00009

Originally published as part of the entry for Zoilus, n.

Zoilus, n. was first published in 1921; not fully revised.