SACRILEGIOUS Synonyms: 40 Similar and Opposite Words

sacrilegious

adjective

ˌsa-krə-ˈli-jəs

Definition of sacrilegious

as in blasphemous

not showing proper reverence for the holy or sacred a sacrilegious, obscene joke—and told in church at that!

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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 sacrilegious In any other context, a house of God smattered with people staring at their phones, trusting AI to speak to them, might feel sacrilegious. — Andrew R. Chow, Time, 26 May 2026 Call me sacrilegious, but there’s one place that a King’s Hawaiian roll tastes even better than the altar rail, and that’s at the beach. — Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 25 May 2026 To drag a man in fetters into the grand illuminated temple of liberty, and call upon him to join you in joyous anthems, were inhuman mockery and sacrilegious irony. — Jeremy Mennis, The Conversation, 1 May 2026 Burstyn concerned a short film directed by Roberto Rossellini called The Miracle (1948) that had been banned in New York as sacrilegious. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for sacrilegious

Recent Examples of Synonyms for sacrilegious

Adjective

But when The Satanic Verses was published in 1988, the novel was declared by some as blasphemous, and then-Iranian leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini issued a fatwa for Rushdie to be assassinated, leading the author to go into hiding until 1998.

— Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 12 Aug. 2026
Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, then Iran's supreme leader, denounced the book as blasphemous, leading to a call for Rushdie's death in 1989, according to the Department of Justice.

— Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 30 July 2026

Definition of blasphemous

Adjective

Many other traditionalists have made a version of Scruton’s critique, insisting that contemporary art reflects self-indulgent, relativistic, and impious tendencies.

— Luis Parrales, The Atlantic, 28 Apr. 2026
While no formal announcement has been made to update its longstanding alcohol ban, Andrew Leber of Tulane University said this is in line with the Kingdom’s past approach to such potentially impious reforms.

— Hugh Cameron, MSNBC Newsweek, 9 Dec. 2025

Definition of impious

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

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

And as Maruša pushes back her departure again and again, Alja’s behavior becomes more erratic — dark and deeply sad revelations that Menart tempers with a delicately irreverent sense of humor.

— Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 22 Aug. 2026
Jack in the Box has some of the same ingredients — an irreverent brand voice, a broad menu and a willingness to experiment — but needs to turn them into a more coherent proposition.

— Mark Faithfull, Forbes.com, 21 Aug. 2026

Definition of irreverent

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

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“Sacrilegious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sacrilegious. Accessed 29 Aug. 2026.

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Synonyms of sacrilegious

adjective

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