as in pious
formal
showing or having a lot of respect
a reverential attitude They spoke in reverential terms about their recently departed spiritual advisor.
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Recent Examples of reverential
The opening-week success of the younger-skewing Predator: Badlands offers hope, and though his film doesn’t quite go as agreeably haywire as Ari Aster’s Eddington, Wright is working in a similarly ambitious, contemporary-retro style that’s reverential without being the slightest bit nostalgic.
—
Damon Wise, Deadline, 11 Nov. 2025
There are also occasional flashes of Sharon Van Etten’s early 2010s albums, and producer Adam Schatz (of Landlady, who has also worked with Japanese Breakfast and Neko Case) has created a perfect setting for the songs that evokes the ’70s influences without being overly reverential.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
Maggie shows reverential awe for Alma, who carries the same regard for her student whilst having a nepotistic bond with Hank.
—Essence, 15 Oct. 2025
This is a different era, one less reverential of spiritual authority.
—D. T. Max, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reverential
Damon Wise, Deadline, 11 Nov. 2025
There are also occasional flashes of Sharon Van Etten’s early 2010s albums, and producer Adam Schatz (of Landlady, who has also worked with Japanese Breakfast and Neko Case) has created a perfect setting for the songs that evokes the ’70s influences without being overly reverential.
—Jem Aswad, Variety, 17 Oct. 2025
Maggie shows reverential awe for Alma, who carries the same regard for her student whilst having a nepotistic bond with Hank.
—Essence, 15 Oct. 2025
This is a different era, one less reverential of spiritual authority.
—D. T. Max, New Yorker, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for reverential
Recent Examples of Synonyms for reverential
Adjective
-
Singh, who would be our local guide, always wore the five traits of a pious Sikh man — uncut hair (symbolizing strength and holiness and topped by the identifying turban), a steel bracelet, wooden comb, sheathed dagger and a baggy undergarment dating back to the Sikhs’ warrior days on horses.—
Norma Meyer,
Oc Register,
4 Feb. 2026
-
In the old days, when Muslims had a great civilization, their smart and pious people also got paid for being smart and pious.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
2 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
There are certain touchstones of life that demand a respectful response.—
Jerry Shnay,
Chicago Tribune,
9 Feb. 2026
-
The mood was sombre and respectful.—
Andy Mitten,
New York Times,
7 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
But James never commits fully enough to the spiritual/supernatural side to add much dimension to the confused narrative.—
David Rooney,
HollywoodReporter,
3 Feb. 2026
-
With the arrival of Lent, millions of Catholics around the world begin a period of reflection and spiritual preparation leading up to Holy Week, the central moment of the Christian faith that commemorates the passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.—
Nadia Cantú,
AZCentral.com,
3 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Those elements, and time spent in the sauna, are meant to create a magical, reverent place that exists between worlds and outside of hierarchies, Argeropoulous said.—
Bridget Fogarty,
jsonline.com,
2 Feb. 2026
-
But the campaign against Good is different—because The Homeland takes particular and perverse interest in women deemed insufficiently reverent of hearth and home.—
Ta-Nehisi Coates,
Vanity Fair,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Women, whether secular or religious, remain forbidden to read, write or tell stories.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Feb. 2026
-
The film is really about being Iranian, growing up in an oppressed religious context, and becoming full of rage and anger and hate and leaving your country for the hope of finding a better life.—
Georg Szalai,
HollywoodReporter,
4 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Essentially worshipful in its view of Lee, the movie never acknowledges that one person drawing so much unbridled admiration is more than a little creepy.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
25 Dec. 2025
-
But while his adoration does have an erotic edge to it (see: The Shape of Water), on the whole, his affection for the misshapen and the outcast among us is more worshipful than overtly lusty.—
Katie Rife,
Vulture,
9 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Reverential.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/reverential. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.
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