as in temporal
not involving religion or religious matters
that's an issue for the secular authorities, not the church
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Recent Examples of secular
Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
At least, not according to received wisdom in the secular twenty-first-century West.
—Literary Hub, 3 June 2026
Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2023
His selection of works, for example, mixed the sacred with the secular, interspersing chorale preludes (which use Lutheran hymns as their point of departure) with the six trio sonatas for organ.
—Luke Schulze, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for secular
Adjective
Its secular cast was not its only imprint.
—Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 8 June 2026
At least, not according to received wisdom in the secular twenty-first-century West.
—Literary Hub, 3 June 2026
Noun
There was a change of heart among the secular nationalists during the second intifada—which started in 2000 and ended in 2005—in which seculars also joined forces.
—Isaac Chotiner, The New Yorker, 10 Mar. 2023
His selection of works, for example, mixed the sacred with the secular, interspersing chorale preludes (which use Lutheran hymns as their point of departure) with the six trio sonatas for organ.
—Luke Schulze, San Diego Union-Tribune, 8 Dec. 2022
See All Example Sentences for secular
Recent Examples of Synonyms for secular
Adjective
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Kate Fry, whose assignment here as Gretl requires a temporal transition from the coquettish and sensuous to a character rich with the moral authority of experience and an ability to judge the folly of others, is quite extraordinary.—
Chris Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
15 June 2026
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In an instant – or rather, through a grueling, ugly, then gritty, then triumphant Game 5 – that temporal distance is temporarily undone.—
Hannah Keyser,
CNN Money,
14 June 2026
Noun
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In the United States, the layman can do this any day of the week, especially Saturday, if the weather is nice.—
Caity Weaver,
The Atlantic,
12 June 2026
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What may shock the layman, though, is that all three of those schools also have strong baseball programs as well.—
Austin Perry OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
2 June 2026
Adjective
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Florida statutes creating the charter school framework also require those schools to be nonreligious.—
Gray Rohrer,
Sun Sentinel,
2 Apr. 2026
-
Republicans vow to appeal Arkansas ruling Last year, seven Arkansas families of various religious and nonreligious backgrounds filed a lawsuit challenging the state’s new law requiring all public elementary and secondary schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom and library.—
Sara Cline,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Wilding’s evidence seems obvious in hindsight, even to a layperson.—
Matthew Wills,
JSTOR Daily,
8 June 2026
-
Our dashboards should be immediately legible to a layperson.—
Ashoka,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Secular.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/secular. Accessed 18 Jun. 2026.
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