LAICAL Synonyms: 56 Similar and Opposite Words

laical

adjective

variants or laic

Definition of laical

as in irreligious

Related Words

Relevance

Dissimilar Words

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for laical

Adjective

Because materialism had an irreligious connotation, Hattem says it was left out of the national conversation until the Gilded Age of the 1920s, when people start saying the quiet part out loud.

— Cari Shane, USA Today, 25 June 2026
This story is told by an unnamed narrator, an irreligious woman who has joined the nuns as a lay resident after her faith in environmental advocacy crumbled.

— Robert Rubsam, The Atlantic, 26 Mar. 2026

Definition of irreligious

Adjective

Before that, the monarchy had promoted a more secular and westernized image of women.

— Tim Lister, CNN Money, 23 Aug. 2026
Whether to use the stations is a private choice, and any individual may use the facilities for either a secular or religious purpose.

— Maven Navarro, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 Aug. 2026

Definition of secular

Adjective

Spiritual connections with monks A foundational feature of Theravada Buddhism is the relationship between monastics and the lay people.

— Brooke Schedneck, The Conversation, 24 Aug. 2026
Surrounding ourselves with the best people and working on our team, developing ourselves and not just our staff but also our lay leaders.

— Jessica Tzikas, Sun Sentinel, 19 Aug. 2026

Definition of lay

Adjective

His father's death during World War II influenced his pursuit of the ministry even amid the officially atheistic communist regime of the Soviet Union, according to his obituary on the OCU website.

— ABC News, ABC News, 20 Mar. 2026
But there has been a recent rise in secular congregations that explicitly mimic religious organizations and rituals to celebrate atheistic worldviews.

— Jacqui Frost, The Conversation, 11 Jan. 2024

Definition of atheistic

Adjective

There’s more than a tinge of folk horror to this lingering mystery, which brings to mind the 1973 genre landmark The Wicker Man, in which a puritanical police officer travels to a remote island community that’s reverted to old pagan ways.

— Keith Phipps, Vulture, 15 June 2026
Glenn Turner, the former owner of a pagan and metaphysical shop, is running as a member of the Green Party.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 May 2026

Definition of pagan

Adjective

Up to that point, America’s external enemy—the godless Soviets—gave the movement coherence and urgency.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 25 Aug. 2026
Sometimes this was committed to good, such as the Marshall Plan and the Peace Corps, and sometimes to ill, as in a series of military blunders meant to quash godless Communism.

— Jim Rasenberger, The Atlantic, 4 July 2026

Definition of godless

Adjective

And then in high school, kind of toward the end, I got really involved with my youth group at my church, which was a nondenominational church.

— Rachel Syme, New Yorker, 23 Aug. 2026
The nondenominational Philadelphia group, founded in 1787 by Black leaders Richard Allen and Absalom Jones, was one of the country’s first mutual aid organizations.

— James Pollard, Fortune, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of nondenominational

Adjective

One of those laws, the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, states a charter school must be nonsectarian.

— Beth Wallis, StateImpact, 10 May 2026
The National Day of Prayer, while officially nonsectarian, has long been drawn particular promotion and participation from evangelical Christians.

— Peter Smith, Twin Cities, 21 Apr. 2026

Definition of nonsectarian

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.

Browse Nearby Words

lags

laical

laid

See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

Style

“Laical.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/laical. Accessed 28 Aug. 2026.

Copy Citation

Synonyms of laical

adjective

Example Sentences

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

cogent

Popular in Grammar & Usage

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

What's the difference between 'fascism' and 'socialism'?

Commonly Misspelled Words

Popular in Wordplay

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Even More Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Aug. 28

Why do we say 'break a leg'?

Popular

A Who’s Who Regarding ‘Who’s’ and ‘Whose’

Ye Olde Nincompoop: Old-Fashioned Words for 'Stupid'

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

Games & Quizzes