nonobservant
adjective
non·ob·ser·vant
ˌnän-əb-ˈzər-vənt 
: not observant
especially
: not careful in observing religious rites, laws, and customs
a nonobservant Jew
Examples of nonobservant in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Intolerance to gay rights and the nonobservant: Where Netanyahu and other Western right-wing leaders have tentatively embraced LGBT rights in recent years, the Israeli far right is often openly hostile.
—
Adam Taylor, Washington Post, 3 Nov. 2022
About 300 people, most affiliated with EMIH but also including some nonobservant Hungarian Jews, attended a street celebration that culminated with the affixing of a new mezuzah at the synagogue by Rabbi Szlomo Koves, the head of EMIH.
—Cnaan Liphshiz, sun-sentinel.com, 8 Sep. 2021
Richard Lowell Rubenstein was born Jan. 28, 1924, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan to Jesse and Sara (Fine) Rubenstein, nonobservant parents who chose not even to have their son called to the Torah for his bar mitzvah.
—BostonGlobe.com, 6 June 2021
Though not all Jews observe all aspects of the holiday, it’s known as the one holiday on which many nonobservant Jews attend synagogue.
—Erin Blakemore, National Geographic, 25 Sep. 2020
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Adam Taylor, Washington Post, 3 Nov. 2022
About 300 people, most affiliated with EMIH but also including some nonobservant Hungarian Jews, attended a street celebration that culminated with the affixing of a new mezuzah at the synagogue by Rabbi Szlomo Koves, the head of EMIH.
—Cnaan Liphshiz, sun-sentinel.com, 8 Sep. 2021
Richard Lowell Rubenstein was born Jan. 28, 1924, on the Lower East Side of Manhattan to Jesse and Sara (Fine) Rubenstein, nonobservant parents who chose not even to have their son called to the Torah for his bar mitzvah.
—BostonGlobe.com, 6 June 2021
Though not all Jews observe all aspects of the holiday, it’s known as the one holiday on which many nonobservant Jews attend synagogue.
—Erin Blakemore, National Geographic, 25 Sep. 2020
Cite this Entry
“Nonobservant.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/nonobservant. Accessed 10 Sep. 2025.
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