Bible-basher

noun

Bi·​ble-bash·​er
variants or less commonly bible-basher
plural Bible-bashers also bible-bashers
chiefly British, informal
: bible-thumper
The old-style Bible-bashers were street-corner evangelists who bawled all Hell out of luckless sinners for the greater glory of the Lord.Douglas Fairey, Weekend, 7–13 Feb. 1968
… the activities of opium-smugglers and bible-bashers in the early nineteenth century provide some wryly amusing material of which the author makes the most.Times Literary Supplement, 26 Jan. 1967
Bible-bashing adjective
or less commonly bible-bashing
Although the gamblers had helped lay the economic foundations of the American South, their expulsion begat the God-fearing, Bible-bashing belt still with us today. Anthony Holden, Big Deal, 1990
They've drifted from organised religion because of the fashion in recent decades for the materialistic lifestyle, and won't be enticed back by Bible-bashing evangelism or Christian social strictures. George Pitcher, Daily Telegraph (London), 17 Dec. 2009

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1945, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of Bible-basher was circa 1945

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Cite this Entry

“Bible-basher.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Bible-basher. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

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