satanism

noun

sa·​tan·​ism ˈsā-tə-ˌni-zəm How to pronounce satanism (audio)
often capitalized
1
: innate wickedness
2
: obsession with or affinity for evil
specifically : worship of Satan marked by the travesty of Christian rites
satanist noun often capitalized

Examples of satanism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web The claim: Images show evidence of 'satanism in public schools' An Aug. 22 Facebook video (direct link, archive link) shows a person talking alongside images of schoolchildren wearing horns and sitting around a pentagram. Chris Mueller, USA TODAY, 7 Sep. 2023 Vladimir Putin attacked the U.S. for satanism and denounced the many genders in fashion in the West. William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 2 Oct. 2022 Popular culture and social media have also ferried ideas about satanism and widespread child abuse from fringe to the mainstream. Brandy Zadrozny, NBC News, 14 Sep. 2022 That’s the good satanism. James Wood, The New Yorker, 24 Jan. 2022 Discussion about satanism and satanic abuse has increased in recent years, according to data provided to NBC News by Zignal Labs, which analyzes social media conversations. Brandy Zadrozny, NBC News, 14 Sep. 2022 Melzer is not the first American soldier charged with plotting crimes inspired by satanism. Ali Winston, Rolling Stone, 5 June 2022 In the daily diet of propaganda that Russia feeds its citizens, Ukrainians are Nazis, Russian soldiers are liberators, Americans are schemers and Ukrainian forces are practitioners of satanism. Michael Collins, USA TODAY, 8 May 2022 Tweets mentioning satanism more than tripled from Nov. 7 through Nov. 9 compared with the prior three-day period, according to the Storyful analysis. Neil Shah, WSJ, 9 Dec. 2021

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'satanism.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

1565, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of satanism was in 1565

Dictionary Entries Near satanism

Cite this Entry

“Satanism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/satanism. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

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