as in atheistical
not showing proper reverence for the holy or sacred
an impious act that horrified their pious mother
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Recent Examples of impious
The only true dictionary is the lost one, the dictionary of the language that perished when the impious tower was built: the original language, God’s language.
—
Mariana Dimópulos, Harpers Magazine, 26 Mar. 2025
This game must have seemed profane to the Greeks, or even impious.
—Simone Weil, Harper's Magazine, 2 July 2024
Both narratives, private and public, differently restrict our access, so the ideal historian will need great tact and an impious curiosity.
—James Wood, The New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2023
Sarah Thompson, the MFA’s curator of Japanese Art, and curatorial assistant Kendall DeBoer, who put the show’s more than 350 works together, deserve credit for being impious, not reverent.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 23 Mar. 2023
To cut short these death throes is both impious (for those who believe) and immoral (for anyone).
—Michel Houellebecq, Harper’s Magazine , 6 Jan. 2023
Mariana Dimópulos, Harpers Magazine, 26 Mar. 2025
This game must have seemed profane to the Greeks, or even impious.
—Simone Weil, Harper's Magazine, 2 July 2024
Both narratives, private and public, differently restrict our access, so the ideal historian will need great tact and an impious curiosity.
—James Wood, The New Yorker, 4 Sep. 2023
Sarah Thompson, the MFA’s curator of Japanese Art, and curatorial assistant Kendall DeBoer, who put the show’s more than 350 works together, deserve credit for being impious, not reverent.
—Globe Staff, BostonGlobe.com, 23 Mar. 2023
To cut short these death throes is both impious (for those who believe) and immoral (for anyone).
—Michel Houellebecq, Harper’s Magazine , 6 Jan. 2023
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impious
Adjective
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Think that's wild and somehow sacrilegious?—
Marcus K. Dowling,
Nashville Tennessean,
27 Sep. 2025
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Any extra trimmings would land somewhere between glib and sacrilegious.—
Sophie Monks Kaufman,
IndieWire,
3 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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When a blasphemous pop star threatens to upend their happy life and displace the sisters, Mother Constance sets out to save the convent by any means necessary.—
Rosy Cordero,
Deadline,
17 Sep. 2025
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But isn't the whole idea blasphemous?—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Hamas’s founding goal was to wrest control of the Palestinian national movement from its secular rivals and transform it into an Islamist cause.—
Hussein Ibish,
The Atlantic,
1 Oct. 2025
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Interview Jews, Israeli Arabs, Druze, orthodox, secular, etc.—
Jordan King,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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But as in most of his roles since The Departed and The Fighter, Wahlberg shows little charisma, particularly when he’s flanked by an actor with the irreverent verve of LaKeith Stanfield, who steals every scene without even breaking a sweat.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
30 Sep. 2025
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Italian denim brand Diesel has been a fixture on the scene since the 1970s, celebrated for its edgy and irreverent styles that defined Italian streetwear.—
Abbey Hudetz,
Travel + Leisure,
27 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Impious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impious. Accessed 2 Oct. 2025.
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