atheism

athe·ism | \ ˈā-thē-ˌi-zəm

How to pronounce atheism (audio)

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Definition of atheism

1a : a lack of belief or a strong disbelief in the existence of a god or any gods

b : a philosophical or religious position characterized by disbelief in the existence of a god or any gods

2 archaic : godlessness especially in conduct : ungodliness, wickedness

Examples of atheism in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web University of Kentucky scholar Will Gervais and colleagues have found that people in several countries even tend to associate serial murder with atheism, relative to religious belief. — Jordan W. Moon, Quartz, "Intense prejudice exists against atheists in the US," 28 Dec. 2019 Matt, though raised Catholic, had rejected his upbringing after college, eventually settling on atheism. — Washington Post, "The holidays as an interfaith family: Trying to have a merry everything and a happy always," 9 Dec. 2019 Johanson has also won awards for championing atheism. — Grant Segall, cleveland, "Donald Johanson, famous finder of Lucy’s fossils, returns to Cleveland Museum of Natural History," 24 Oct. 2019 The government cannot promote atheism over religion, that’s true. — Jay Wexler, Vox, "6 things I wish people understood about atheism in America," 14 June 2019 Even as the country has become, overall, more tolerant and more accepting of other faith traditions, atheism has long remained the conspicuous exception. — Harry Bruinius, The Christian Science Monitor, "Spiritual or atheist? More nonbelievers are saying ‘both.’," 11 Mar. 2019 In 1992, the government dropped its constitutional references to atheism, and a gradual thaw in church-state relations began, culminating with the papal visit on Jan. 21-25, 1998, and government acceptance of some outdoor religious events. — Peter Orsi, BostonGlobe.com, "Cardinal Ortega, former archbishop of Havana, at 82," 27 July 2019 But Einstein also closed his letter with a sentiment that is often overlooked in the complicated and, in fact, wildly diverse landscape of American nonbelief, including atheism and its less strident cousin, agnosticism. — Harry Bruinius, The Christian Science Monitor, "Spiritual or atheist? More nonbelievers are saying ‘both.’," 11 Mar. 2019 In truth, the show revels in skewering both sides, taking more shots at Robin’s atheism than Nate’s faith, for example. — Travis M. Andrews, Washington Post, "‘The Detour,’ one of TV’s most outlandish shows, is also one of its best arguments for family," 18 June 2019

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'atheism.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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Last Updated

16 Jan 2020

Cite this Entry

“Atheism.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/atheism. Accessed 26 Feb. 2020.

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