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unreligious

unreligious

1 6.0
Not believing in a god or taking part in worship
  • adjective
  • /ˌʌnrɪˈlɪdʒəs/
: irreligioso
  • A completely unreligious Ten Commandments.

Examples

  • In a predominantly unreligious society, cultural beliefs often take precedence over spiritual doctrines.

  • The Constitution allows a nation with a religious character or an unreligious one.

    Blog text (16)
  • I think the Constitution permits both a religious nation and an unreligious one, a conclusion my erstwhile blogbrother comes to in his excellent.

    Blog text (9)
  • Dr. Peggy Shriver, an Assistant General Secretary of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A., drew attention to a growing restlessness among young church members and the spread of spiritual hunger; she also observed that being "unchurched" in America does not necessarily mean being unreligious or irreligious.

    Academic text (2014)
  • It's her tactic to believe women are what's moral: the unreligious part: a measure (they're soft flesh—solace and amusement; they make up for God's being what He is).

    Fiction book (1991)
  • Many people consider themselves unreligious because they do not follow any formal religious practices.

  • His unreligious upbringing led him to question traditional beliefs during his adult life.

Synonyms

godless
vsunreligious
31 7.0

Not believing in God or following any religion

is a neutral lack of belief or practice without naming deity stance
unbelieving
vsunreligious
3 6.8

Not accepting the idea of God or other religious ideas

is neutral absence of belief or practice rather than active rejection
irreligious
vsunreligious
3 8.6

Not interested in religion or being against it

simply lacks belief or practice without hostile attitude
unspiritual
vsunreligious
1 7.4

Not interested in religious or moral ideas and focused on practical things

refers specifically to not having or showing beliefs or practices
nonspiritual
vsunreligious
1 5.6

About everyday life or material things, not about religion

focuses on not having or showing beliefs or practices instead of secular nature
religionless
vsunreligious
1 7.5

Not belonging to or following any religion

is the general absence of showing beliefs or practices
atheistical
vsunreligious
1 9.9

Not believing in God or gods

is a general lack of belief or practice rather than a declared philosophy
nonbelieving
vsunreligious
1 5.2

Not believing in religious ideas or practices

is broader, meaning lack of belief or practice overall

Antonyms

∞ 2.7

Believing in gods or spiritual ideas

How Religious

devout
53 5.7
religious
∞ 2.7
unreligious
1 6.0
nonreligious
3 4.1
atheistic
10 6.7

Surface Forms

unreligious positive

Morphology

unreligious = religious (transparent) = un + religious

The productive negating prefix 'un-' is directly applied to the adjective 'religious', so the meaning is predictable.

Etymology

The word unreligious starts with un- meaning 'not' and comes from religious and religion, a word that originally meant 'to bind' people to beliefs or practices, so a helpful image is someone who is 'not bound' by religion. That's why unreligious describes a person or community that does 'not' have or show religious beliefs.