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
Relevance
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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
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
-
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
-
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
-
Petrie didn’t only celebrate his own hits but pointed to rival shows like Sky’s Saturday Night Live UK and Prime Video’s Last One Laughing as proof that British comedy is in rude health.—
Max Goldbart,
Deadline,
13 May 2026
-
Elizabeth continues to be an infuriating character, interrupting with rude and unhelpful asides throughout the entire family meeting, casually gnawing on an orange slice as Greg and Katie have a heart-to-heart across the table.—
Erin Qualey,
Vulture,
11 May 2026
Adjective
-
Take George Mullins — 18 years old at the battle of Carentan, one of the most savage engagements of the war, where his company lost 43 of its 45 men in three days of fighting.—
Afdhel Aziz,
Forbes.com,
18 May 2026
-
The perpetrators of these crimes are savage animals without a shred of humanity.—
Bobby Zirkin,
Baltimore Sun,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
White Sox fans got the last laugh on Sunday afternoon as their squad completed a wild, thrilling comeback victory over their crosstown rivals.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
18 May 2026
-
Ebola virus is transmitted to people from wild animals, such as fruit bats, porcupines and non-human primates, with fruit bats believed to be the natural hosts of the orthoebolavirus.—
Saman Shafiq,
USA Today,
18 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Heathen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/heathen. Accessed 21 May. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
