as in heathenism
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Recent Examples of paganism
Leland presented European material as the survival of an ancient pagan cult—moreover, a paganism that had been demonized by Christianity.
—
Angelica Frey, JSTOR Daily, 18 Apr. 2025
The songs molded a claustrophobic, atmospheric universe out of blast beats, buzz-saw guitars and strangled shrieking, with misanthropic lyrics that explored bleakness, despair, paganism and coldness (both metaphorical and literal).
—Elisabeth Vincentelli, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2025
Despite its allegorical significance about paganism, the snake myth has persisted unquestioned.
—Gemma Allen, Forbes, 16 Mar. 2025
All across Central Europe, a fascination with runes and folk magic aligns with both right-wing xenophobia and left-wing paganism.
—Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paganism
Angelica Frey, JSTOR Daily, 18 Apr. 2025
The songs molded a claustrophobic, atmospheric universe out of blast beats, buzz-saw guitars and strangled shrieking, with misanthropic lyrics that explored bleakness, despair, paganism and coldness (both metaphorical and literal).
—Elisabeth Vincentelli, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2025
Despite its allegorical significance about paganism, the snake myth has persisted unquestioned.
—Gemma Allen, Forbes, 16 Mar. 2025
All across Central Europe, a fascination with runes and folk magic aligns with both right-wing xenophobia and left-wing paganism.
—Anne Applebaum, The Atlantic, 7 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for paganism
Recent Examples of Synonyms for paganism
Noun
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The opera ends with Akhnaten’s son, presumably Tutankhamun, restoring polytheism, and then, once the staging jumps millennia into the future, it’s rediscovered by modern-day tourists.—
Classical Music Critic,
Los Angeles Times,
6 Mar. 2026
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Nefertiti was the principal wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten, the ruler who upended Egypt's religious customs away from polytheism and toward Atenism.—
Andrea Margolis,
FOXNews.com,
23 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Khamenei went on to pursue theology, a path that led him to the holy city of Qom to study under — and build relationships with — ultra-conservative religious clerics.—
Rachel Treisman,
NPR,
9 Mar. 2026
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For Smith, in his hopes and oversights, was a fabulist as much as a scientist, a man doing theology as surely as economics.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Stasevska was born in 1984, the same year that Glass’ hypnotic, ritualistic opera, about an Egyptian pharaoh who dared to push monotheism onto his polytheistic culture, debuted in Stuttgart, Germany.—
Tim Greiving,
Los Angeles Times,
27 Feb. 2026
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With the rise of monotheism, their existence had to be brought under the power and perfection of a single god.—
Manvir Singh,
New Yorker,
27 Oct. 2025
Noun
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In 1809, Friedrich’s budding pantheism landed him in hot water.—
Zachary Fine,
The New Yorker,
28 June 2024
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If anyone is wondering, stoicism and pantheism are my preferred lenses through to view the world.—
Christa Allen,
Allure,
28 May 2021
Noun
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The Chinese Communists aren’t trying to extirpate every last trace of theism, thereby inviting the undivided opposition of religious believers and institutions (as the Soviets did with regard to John Paul II’s Vatican).—
Cameron Hilditch,
National Review,
21 Feb. 2021
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Thoreau moves fluidly between the two, shuttling between the divine and the here-and-now, between theism and materialism.—
Longreads,
Longreads,
13 July 2017
Noun
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Two people in the same local assembly may share similar doctrines but be at odds over the efficacy of modern scientific medicine, especially vaccines.—
Cory Anderson,
STAT,
6 Mar. 2026
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To some, Midnight Hammer validated a doctrine of decisive action—limited in duration but maximal in force.—
Eric Cortellessa,
Time,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
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This vague gesture in the direction of deism has no antecedent in the book, no moral or theological trajectory to make Bambi’s insight meaningful or satisfying.—
Kathryn Schulz,
The New Yorker,
17 Jan. 2022
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Those intuitions usually commended a staid deism and scorn for those whose beliefs extended any further.—
Jeffrey Collins,
WSJ,
12 Mar. 2021
Noun
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The hillbilly elegist turned venture capitalist once seemed poised to remake Reaganite Republican dogma.—
Idrees Kahloon,
The Atlantic,
5 Mar. 2026
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Such dogma overlooks that these policies are profoundly out of step with Black New York.—
Darius Jones,
New York Daily News,
15 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Paganism.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/paganism. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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