heathen

[hee-thuhn]

noun

plural

heathens, heathen 

1. (in historical contexts) a member of a people that do not acknowledge the God of the Bible; a pagan.

2. Sometimes Disparaging and Offensive.

   1. a person who is not a Christian, Jew, or Muslim.

   2. an irreligious, uncultured, or uncivilized person.

adjective

1. (in historical contexts) of or relating to heathens; pagan.

2. Sometimes Disparaging and Offensive.

   1. relating to a religion, person, or culture that is not Christian, Jewish, or Muslim.

   2. irreligious, uncultured, or uncivilized.

heathen

/ ˈhiːðən /

noun

1. a person who does not acknowledge the God of Christianity, Judaism, or Islam; pagan

2. an uncivilized or barbaric person

3. (functioning as plural) heathens collectively

adjective

1. irreligious; pagan

2. unenlightened; uncivilized; barbaric

3. of or relating to heathen peoples or their religious, moral, and other customs, practices, and beliefs

Other Word Forms

• heathendom noun
• heathenhood noun
• heathenness noun
• heathenship noun
• half-heathen adjective
• nonheathen noun
• unheathen adjective
• heathenism noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of heathen¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English hethen, Old English hǣthen, akin to German Heide, heidnisch (adjective), Old Norse heithingi (noun), heithinn (adjective), Gothic haithno (noun); perhaps akin to heath

Word History and Origins

Origin of heathen¹

Old English hǣthen; related to Old Norse heithinn, Old Frisian hēthin, Old High German heidan

Synonym Study

See pagan.

Example Sentences

A 9th century account describes the Lindisfarne massacre as nightmarish scenes of blood and trampling and terror, of “heathen men made lamentable havoc.”

From Los Angeles Times

The Trump Tower shimmered in the distance like a mean-spirited heathen God of diseased greed; rapturous and belching out the capitalistic indulgence of America as if in the throes of passion.

From Salon

That justifies viewing others as “heathens,” including the enslaved Blacks and the Native Americans whose land was being taken.

From Seattle Times

“I was looking for the heathens, but there are none,” said Wayne Harris, 75, who had traveled from costal Rockport, Texas.

From New York Times

He added that in his view the modern tradition of Halloween had been conceived in a "heathen, contemporary world", as a counterbalance to the Catholic feast of All Souls' Day.

From BBC

Related Words

• ungodly