Cheke, Sir John (chēk), 1514–57, English scholar. As professor of Greek at Cambridge he taught Roger Ascham and later was tutor to Edward VI. A Protestant, he was imprisoned by Mary I. Although most of his works are Latin translations from the Greek, his works in English are noted for their simple, lucid prose.

Cheke, Sir John

(born June 16, 1514—died Sept. 13, 1557, London, Eng.) English humanist. A supporter of the Reformation, he was named professor of Greek at Cambridge University by Henry VIII and knighted by Edward VI. With his friend, the statesman Thomas Smith (1513–77), he ably defended the historical pronunciation of Attic Greek, introduced by Erasmus, in opposition to the post-Classical pronunciation that was then the norm. Cheke was imprisoned briefly on the accession of Mary I; he fled abroad but was captured in the Netherlands in 1556 and confined to the Tower of London. He recanted Protestantism to avoid execution and died the following year, allegedly depressed by his forced abjuration.