as in barbarian
not civilized
old missionaries who mistakenly thought that they were going off to China to tame the heathen hordes
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in pagan
a person who does not worship the God of the Bible
a study of the beliefs and practices of ancient heathens
Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in primitive
an uncivilized person
European colonizers, who considered the New World peoples to be heathens, forced them to conform to European ways
Synonyms & Similar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of heathen
Paul Daugherty, Cincinnati.com, 30 May 2019
Each essay will identify a contemporary issue, discuss it through the lens of heathen myths, and suggest a solution based on heathen ideals.
—Sigal Samuel, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2017
Foreign Affairs, 7 Jan. 2025
In the years after the Civil War, both Republicans and Democrats portrayed the Chinese arriving on the Pacific Coast as an invading horde, a heathen, unassimilable people.
—Jeannie Suk Gersen, The New Yorker, 6 Nov. 2022
See All Example Sentences for heathen
Adjective
Some of my brethren and sis-tren (sis-tren?) in the heathen media tribe get all riled up if a player or coach won’t speak to them.
—Paul Daugherty, Cincinnati.com, 30 May 2019
Each essay will identify a contemporary issue, discuss it through the lens of heathen myths, and suggest a solution based on heathen ideals.
—Sigal Samuel, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2017
Noun
Among Catholic Filipinos, the stereotype of the Moros as dangerous heathens lingers, and discrimination against them remains widespread.
—Foreign Affairs, 7 Jan. 2025
In the years after the Civil War, both Republicans and Democrats portrayed the Chinese arriving on the Pacific Coast as an invading horde, a heathen, unassimilable people.
—Jeannie Suk Gersen, The New Yorker, 6 Nov. 2022
See All Example Sentences for heathen
Recent Examples of Synonyms for heathen
Adjective
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For the design of the barbarian figure, Sweet reached out to Mark Taylor, an artist and designer at Mattel.—
Sanat Pai RaikarAll,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
4 May 2026
-
When the Western Roman Empire fell in the fifth century C.E., Europe was plunged into chaos as barbarian Germanic forces advanced south—or so the story goes.—
Emma Gometz,
Scientific American,
29 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The Church of the Assumption, which sits atop the tiny island, is the fifth house of worship to occupy this spot — which was originally the site of an eighth-century Slavic pagan temple.—
Tribune Content Agency,
Baltimore Sun,
8 Apr. 2026
-
Why would pagans want a coin with a Christian on it?—
Sarah Durn,
Popular Science,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
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That question lives in the wallet, and the wallet, until very recently, did not have the right primitive to answer it.—
Boaz Sobrado,
Forbes.com,
16 May 2026
-
What follows this admission is a piercing dissection not of the art itself, but of frameworks of looking at Black art and life that go beyond racist tropes disguised as appeals to the primitive, the spontaneous, the corporeal.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
12 Mar. 2026
Adjective
-
There is a profound difference between rude political commentary and language that normalizes violence against other human beings.—
Naperville Sun,
Chicago Tribune,
5 June 2026
-
In other words, leaving early isn't inherently rude.—
Jamie Cuccinelli,
Martha Stewart,
2 June 2026
Adjective
-
Their twiggy legs and bony frames exposed in bathing suits, the kids do indeed look extra vulnerable within the film’s savage landscape.—
Beatrice Loayza,
Variety,
25 May 2026
-
Sure, sci-fi can be bleak — there's no end to the cosmic horrors and savage alien races that game developers can conjure up — but that almost always comes as a result of humanity's success in space.—
Ian Stokes,
Space.com,
24 May 2026
Adjective
-
Several of the incidents took place in the mountains, with some people injured while out foraging for wild plants and vegetables.—
Jessie Yeung,
CNN Money,
9 June 2026
-
The 27-year-old tailback was the Broncos’ offensive MVP over the first 10 weeks of a wild, wacky 2025.—
Sean Keeler,
Denver Post,
9 June 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heathen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heathen. Accessed 10 Jun. 2026.
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